0' 


University  of  California. 


v    .,, 

UNIT''       IT  7)1 


MEMORIAL   ADDRESSES 


LIFE   AND  CHARACTER 


MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR 

(A  REPRESENTATIVE  FROM  SOUTH  CAROLINA), 


DKI.1VKUKD    IN    TIIK 


HOUSE    OF    REPRESENTATIVES 


FORT  Y-SE  YEN 


THE    SENATE, 

U.S. 

iSS,    FIRST   SESSION, 


PUBLISHED  flVORDER  OF  CONGRESS. 


WASH  IX(JTON: 

G  OV  E  It  N  M  K  X  T     I'  K  I  X  T  ING     O  F  F  I  C  K 

I «  8  2 . 


JOINT  KEISOLUTION  to  print  certain  eulogies  delivered  in  Congress  upon  the  late  Michael 

P.  O'Connor. 

Resolved  l>y  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States  of 
America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  there  bo  printed  of  the  eulogies  delivered 
in  Congress  upon  the  late  Michael  P.  O'Connor,  a  member-elect  to  the  Forty- 
seventh  Congress  from  the  State  of  South  Carolina,  twelve  thousand  copies, 
of  which  three  thousand  shall  be  for  the  use  of  the  Senate  and  nine  thousand 
for  the  use  of  the  House  of  Representatives;  and  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
he,  and  he  is  hereby,  directed  to  have  printed  a  portrait  of  the  said  Michael 
P.  O'Connor  to  accompany  said  eulogies;  and  for  the  purpose  of  engraving 
and  printing  said  portrait  the  sum  of  five  hundred  dollars,  or  so  much  thereof 
as  may  be  necessary,  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby,  appropriated  out  of  any 
moneys  in  the  Treasury  not  otherwise  appropriated. 

Approved,  March  15,  1882. 
2 


PROCEEDINGS  IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES. 


IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES, 

December  16,  1881. 

Mr.  DIBBLE.  Mr.  Speaker,  it  is  my  melancholy  duty  to  make  to 
this  House  the  announcement  of  the  death  of  my  predecessor,  the 
Hon.  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR,  late  a  member  of  this  House  from 
the  State  of  South  Carolina,  and  to  present  resolutions  of  respect 
to  his  memory.  I  ask  that  the  resolutions  be  read,  and  beg  leave 
to  state  that  I  will  call  them  up  at  the  proper  time  for  further  con 
sideration  and  for  the  expression  by  the  members  of  this  House  of 
the  esteem  in  which  the  memory  of  the  deceased  is  held. 

The  Clerk  read  as  follows  : 

Resolred,  That  this  House  has  heard  with  profound  sorrow  of  the  death 
of  Hon.  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR,  late  a  member  of  this  House  from  the  State 
of  South  Carolina. 

Reaoh-td,  That,  as  a  mark  of  respect  to  his  memory,  the  officers  and  mem 
bers  of  this  House  will  wear  ihe  usual  badge  of  mourning  for  thirty  days. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  transmitted  by  the  Clerk  of 
this  House  to  the  family  of  the  deceased. 

Rvsolrtd,  That  the  Clerk  be  directed  to  communicate  a  copy  of  these  reso 
lutions  to  the  Senate;  and  that,  as  a  further  mark  of  respect  to  the  memory 
of  the  deceased,  this  House  do  now  adjourn. 

Mr.  DIBBLE.  I  now  move,  out  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  the 
deceased,  this  House  do  now  adjourn. 

The  motion  was  agreed  to ;  and  accordingly  the  House  adjourned. 


4          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES, 

February  8,  1882. 

The  SPEAKER.  The  hour  of  three  o'clock  having  arrived,  the 
House  will  now  proceed  to  consider  the  special  order. 

Mr.  DIBBLE.  I  submit  the  resolutions  which  I  send  to  the 
Clerk's  desk. 

The  Clerk  read  as  follows : 

Resolved,  That  this  House  lias  heard  with  profound  sorrow  of  the  death  of 
Hon.  MICHAEL  P.  O'CoNNOK,  late  a  member  of  this  House  from  the  State  of 
South  Carolina. 

Resolved,  That,  as  a  mark  of  respect  to  his  memory,  the  officers  and  mem 
bers  of  this  House  will  wear  the  usual  badge  of  mourning  for  thirty  days. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  transmitted  by  the  Clerk  of 
this  House  to  the  family  of  the  deceased. 

Resolved,  That  the  Clerk  be  directed  to  communicate  a  copy  of  these  reso 
lutions  to  the  Senate;  and  that,  as  a  further  mark  of  respect  to  the  memory 
of  the  deceased,  this  House  do  now  adjourn. 


0'        IK 

UNIVERSITY 


ADDR  ESSES 

OX   THE 

DHATH  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR, 

A    KKPUESKN'TATIVK    KKOM    SOUTH    CAKOUNA. 


DELIVERED  IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES, 

February  8, 


Address  of  Mr.  DIBBLE,  of  South  Carolina. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  The  mortal  remains  of  our  statesmen  and  our 
heroes  are  not  gathered  in  a  cloistered  abbey,  surrounded  with  a 
wealth  of  eulogistic  epitaph ;  there  is  no  favored  area  richer  than 
all  others  as  the  treasury  of  the  ashes  of  our  illustrious  dead.  And 
so  it  should  be.  From  the  ranks  of  the  people  they  have  risen,  as 
the  servants  of  the  people  they  have  achieved  their  honors,  and 
in  the  midst  of  the  people  they  find  their  last  resting-places.  And 
as  their  bodies  mingle  with  the  common  dust  the  soil  of  the 
Republic  becomes  more  and  more  consecrated  to  patriotism  and  to 
liberty,  and  no  pilgrimage  is  necessary  to  find  a  shrine;  for  each 
grave  becomes  a  holy  spot  which  loved  ones  may  often  visit,  and 
where  also  while  the  aged  may  meditate  on  the  transitory  nature 
of  human  glory  the  young  men  of  the  country  may  be  inspired 
with  a  laudable  ambition  to  achieve  a  similar  greatness.  Such  a 
spot  is  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR'S  grave.  In  the  bosom  of  the  soil 
of  his  native  State  his  ashes  rest  in  peace,  but  the  memory  of  his 
good  deeds  completes  the  lesson  interrupted  by  his  early  death. 
And  to-day  we  pause  in  the  usual  work  of  legislation  to  pay  the 
tribute  of  friendship  and  to  record  his  many  virtues. 


6      LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

In  Beaufort,  South  Carolina,  on  the  29th  day  of  September, 
1831,  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR  was  born.  The  place  of  his  birth 
was  one  of  the  garden-spots  of  South  Carolina.  It  was  a  center 
of  culture  and  refinement,  and  has  been  prolific  of  men  who  became 
distinguished  in  the  annals  of  the  State  and  of  the  Republic.  The 
associations  surrounding  the  youth  of  Mr.  O'CoxNOR  were  favor 
able  to  the  development  of  those  brilliant  mental  qualities  which 
gave  early  promise  of  noble  reputation,  to  those  graceful  and  culti 
vated  manners  which  so  fitly  adorned  his  wirm  and  genial  nature, 
and  to  those  lofty  sentiments  of  patriotism  and  devotion  to  duty 
which  inspired  his  whole  career  in  life.  A  liberal  education  at 
home,  and  at  Saint  John's  College,  at  Fordham,  in  the  State  of  New 
York,  developed  his  natural  abilities  into  the  rounded  accomplish 
ments  of  cultured  manhood.  As  the  result  of  his  devotion  to  the 
pursuit  of  learning  we  find  him,  a  graduate  at  the  early  age  of 
eighteen  years,  turning  his  attention  to  the  study  of  the  law  in  the 
city  of  Charleston.  In  those  days  there  was  no  royal  road  by  which 
to  gain  admission  to  the  bar.  Laborious  and  severe  preparation 
ond  a  long  course  of  studious  probation  were  exacted  by  South 
Carolina  of  those  who  aspired  to  the  office  of  the  advocate  and  the 
counselor.  The  commission  of  an  attorney  in  her  courts  of  justice 
was  only  bestowed  after  a  rigid  examination  before  the  judges  of  her 
courts  of  last  resort.  In  the  year  1854,  Mr.  O'CONNOR,  after 
thorough  preparation,  was  duly  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  began  to 
practice  his  profession  at  Charleston ;  and  by  his  close  attention  to 
business,  and  his  brilliant  eloquence  as  an  advocate,  he  marked  his 
pathway  with  many  successes,  and  established  his  position  as  an  able 
and  accomplished  orator  and  lawyer.  But  it  was  then  no  ordinary 
period.  Grave  questions  arose  and  agitated  the  public  mind,  and 
the  time  was  then  rapidly  approaching  when  every  day  would  make 
history.  Mr.  O'CONNOR  entered  with  all  the  fervor  of  his  nature 
into  the  arena  of  politics.  We  find  him  in  1858,  at  the  age  of 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  DIBBLE,  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  7 

twenty-seven,  a  member  of  the  State  legislature  from  the  parish 
of  Saint  Philip's  and  Saint  Michael's,  which  embraced  the  city  of 
Charleston.  This  constituency  he  continued  to  represent,  with 
increasing  popularity  at  home  and  with  marked  influence  in  the 
halls  of  legislation,  until  1866-  During  this  period,  in  the  year 
1860,  one  of  the  most  eloquent  of  his  public  utterances  was  a  ring 
ing  appeal,  in  the  state-house  at  Columbia,  in  favor  of  the  mainte 
nance  of  the  Union  of  the  States. 

After  the  war  was  over  Mr.  O'CONNOR,  in  common  with  the 
people  of  the  South,  found  himself  wrecked  in  fortune.  But  he 
had  indomitable  energy  and  brilliant  talents,  and  he  resumed,  with 
all  the  alacrity  of  his  earlier  life,  his  professional  labors.  Perhaps 
for  one  of  his  cultivated  tastes  and  fondness  for  literary  as  wrell  as 
forensic  pursuits  the  period  of  his  life  preceding  his  re-entry  upon 
a  public  career  was  as  happily  spent  as  any  portion  of  his  days. 
His  profession  afforded  an  ample  field  for  active  and  remunerative 
mental  exercise.  The  companionship  of  friends  of  congenial  tastes 
and  sympathies  gave  opportunity  for  the  enjoyment  of  those  literary 
and  social  recreations  which  add  such  a  charm  to  our  daily  life. 
And  the  quiet  enjoyment  of  home  filled  the  measure  of  content  in 
a  life  so  much  in  unison  with  the  warm  and  genial  nature  of  Mr. 
O'CONNOR. 

But  his  admiring  fellow-citizens  refused  to  consent  to  his  remain 
ing  in  private  life.  Sometimes  persons  aspire  to  public  positions 
of  dignity;  at  other  times  the  occasion  suggests  the  man.  The 
latter  is  true  of  MICHAEL  P.  O'CoxxoR.  He  was  called  upon 
to  accept  the  office  of  Representative  as  a  matter  of  duty,  and  the 
patriot  responded  to  the  call.  How  well  he  fulfilled  the  obligations 
assumed  by  him  here  I  shall  leave  to  those  to  narrate  who  were 
associated  with  him  as  members  of  the  House.  Suffice  it  for  me, 
as  one  of  his  constituents,  to  say  we  were  all  satisfied  at  home. 
And  in  evidence  of  this  I  would  request  to  have  printed  here,  as  a 


LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

part  of  my  remarks,  a  brief  sketch  of  the  action  of  the  city  council 
of  Charleston  on  the  occasion  of  his  death,  which  occurred  at  his 
home  in  that  city  on  the  20th  of  April,  1881 : 

CITY  OF  CHARLESTON, 
Executive  Department,  April  26,  1881. 

The  regular   bimonthly   meeting  of  the  city  council  was  lisld  at  their 
chamber  this  evening.     There  were  present   Hon.  William  A.    Courteuay, 
mayor ;  Aldermen  Dingle,  Roddy,  Chisolm,  Aicliel,  Webb,  White,  Uft'erhardt, 
Moran,  Loeb,  Eckel,    Thayer,   Johnson,    Feehan,    Rose,    Barkley,  Sigwald, 
Rodgers,  and  Ebaugh. 

The  mayor,  with  evident  emotion,  said  : 

"  Gentlemen  of  council,  our  regular  meeting  this  evening  comes  to  us  at  a 
time  of  sorrow  to  a  large  circle  of  family  and  friends,  and  amid  a  general 
feeling  of  sadness  throughout  our  community.  Our  gifted  and  eloquent 
townsman,  M.  P.  O'CONNOR,  the  Representative  in  Congress  from  this 
district,  so  long  and  so  affectionately  known  to  all  of  us,  lies  dead  at  his 
home,  within  sight  of  this  council  chamber. 

"His  hands  are  folded  on  his  breast, 
There  is  no  other  thought  expressed 
Thau  long  disquiet  merged  in  rest. 

"I  feel  that  we  owe  it  alike  to  his  personal  worth  :md  his  official  station 
that  we  should  give  expression  to  our  feelings  of  sympathy  and  condolence 
at  this  afflicting  dispensation  of  Providence,  and  before  proceeding  with  the 
regular  call  of  business  I  have  felt  that  I  would  best  conform  to  your 
own  feelings  by  making  this  official  announcement." 

Alderman  Dingle  offered  the  following  resolutions: 

"His  honor  the  mayor  having  announced  to  the  city  council,  in  council 
chamber  assembled,  the  recent  death,  at  his  residence  in  this  city,  of  Hon. 
M.  P.  O'CONNOR,  member  of  Congress  from  the  first  Congressional  district : 
Therefore, 

"Be  it  resolved  by  the  city  council.  That  in  the  death  of  Hon.  M.  P.  O'CoNNTOR 
the  State  of  South  Carolina  has  lost  a  true,  ardent,  and  faithful  Repre 
sentative  in  the  national  councils,  and  the  city  one  of  its  most  devoted  and 
distinguished  citizens. 

"Resolved,  That  the  city  council  express  herewith  their  sincere  condolence 
with  the  family  of  the  distinguished  deceased  in  their  great  loss. 

"Resolved,  That  the  city  council  attend  in  a  body  the  funeral  of  the 
deceased. 

"Resolved,  That  as  a  mark  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  the  deceased  this 
council  do  now  adjourn." 

Alderman  Utferliardt  said : 

"Mr.  Mayor,  in  rising  to  second  the  resolutions  just  submitted  I  do  so  with 
ii  mournful  and  heavy  heart.  And  I  am  sure  every  member  of  this  council 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  DIBBLE,  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  9 

shares  this  feeling  of  sorrow  over  a  loss  so  unexpected  and  irreparable.  Ay, 
the  whole  city  and  State  feel  with  us  the  calamity  of  seeing  cold  in  death  one 
who  laid  down  his  life  in  the  service  of  his  people;  one  who,  like  a  tried 
warrior  wounded  and  worn  out  upon  the  field  of  battle,  has  not  even  had  time 
to  lay  aside  his  armor,  but  dies  just  as  he  is  brought  away,  although  permitted 
t<>  reach  his  home  and  friends.  I  repeat,  Mr.  Mayor,  that  I  second  the  resolu- 
ti(>iis  before  you,  although  full  of  sorrow  and  regret."  • 

Alderman  Thayer  said : 

"Mr.  Mayor,  I  also  would  second  the  preamble  and  resolutions,  and  add 
my  humble  tribute  to  the  memory  of  our  honored  friend,  fellow-citizen,  and 
Representative. 

"  It  was  not  my  privilege  to  have  been  as  intimately  associated  with  Mr. 
O'CONNOR  as  had  so  many  others,  but  it  was  mine  to  have  known  him  as  my 
friend  and,  realizing,  to  have  appreciated  the  sincerity  of  his  friendship.  The 
genial,  bland  manner  which  always  graced  his  intercourse  with  his  fellows 
was  no  merely  assumed  garb,  but  the  outer  sign  of  the  true  and  noble  heart 
which  dwelt  within. 

"  As  a  citizen,  in  this  presence,  I  need  not  recall  how  well  he  filled  his  part, 
ever  ready  as  he  was  to  give  time,  labor,  and  influence,  and  to  spend  and  be 
spent  in  the  interest  of  our  city,  State,  and  country. 

"And  as  our  Representative  how  fully  he  has  earned  and  deserved  the 
award  of  his  constituency:  'Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servant.'  If  no 
more,  his  long,  earnest,  and  at  last  successful  efforts  in  the  interests  of  those 
who  through  wrong  and  mismanagement  had  been  so  despoiled  of  their  hard- 
earned  savings  will  be  a  proud  monument  to  his  memory,  and  should  call  forth 
tin-  gratitude  of  the  recipients  of  the  results  mainly  attained  through  his 
devoted  care  and  attention.  This,  as  his  other  well-directed  efforts,  may  be 
regarded  as  only  in  the  line  of  official  duty;  but,  sir,  there  was  more  than  the 
simple  performance  of  duty— there  was  largely  involved  the  spirit  of  self- 
sacrifice,  for  as  now  we  learn  how  long  and  severely  he  had  been  battling 
with  the  dread  disease  which  has  just  terminated  his  valuable  life,  we  realize 
and  can  but  admire  the  renunciation  of  self  despite  pain  and  suffering  he  evi 
denced,  yet  to  dare  and  do  where  duty  called. 

"  Hut  now,  'life's  battle's  o'er,'  in  that,  stricken  home  he  lies — 

"In  the  deep  silence  of  that  dreamless  state 
Of  sleep,  that  knows  no  waking  joys  again. 

"There  would  we  tread  lightly:  to  his  sorrow-bowed  loved  ones  extending 
our  heartfelt  sympathies  in  their  sore  bereavement,  and  commending  them 
to  Him  who  has  promised  to  be  the  God  of  the  widow  and  the  father  of  the 
fatherless. 

"Mr.  Mayor,  I  move  the  adoption  of  the  preamble  and  resolutions." 

The  resolutions  were  then  voted  unanimously,  and  the  city  council  was 
declared  adjourned. 

W.  N.  SIMONS, 

Clerk  of  CotniciL 


]  0          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.   ft CONNOR. 

Mr.  Speaker,  how  transitory  are  worldly  honors!  Vitce  summa 
brevis  spem  nos  vetat  inchoare  longam.  The  laurels  of  success 
sometimes  form  the  garland  which  decks  the  victim  for  the  sacrifice. 
Death,  who  "loves  a  shining  mark,"  often  directs  his  shafts  at  the 
glittering  jewel  which  ambition  presses  to  its  breast,  and  aiming  at 
the  bauble,  pierces  a  human  heart.  And,  again,  it  is  true,  as  the 
poet  has  said : 

The  good  die  first, 

And  they  whose  hearts  are  dry  as  summer  dust 
Burn  to  the  socket 

MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR  came  to  these  legislative  halls  full  of 
high  and  noble  purposes.  He  felt  that  his  duty  here  was  to  serve 
his  constituency  and  his  country;  and  he  rendered  the  service  at 
the  expense  of  his  life.  Gifted  as  he  was  with  those  powers  of 
persuasive  eloquence  which  had  captivated  many  an  audience,  he 
became  a  working,  not  a  talking,  member  of  the  House ;  and  in  his 
devotion  to  his  fellow-citizens  at  home  there  was  no  discrimination. 
His  heart  was  large  enough  to  embrace  all  classes.  The  welfare  of 
the  humblest  negro  in  the  log  cabin  of  the  piney-woods  was  the 
object  of  his  careful  solicitude  as  well  as  that  of  the  merchant  and 
the  planter  of  means  and  influence;  and  in  his  career  in  Congress 
some  of  his  most  earnest  efforts  were  for  the  benefit  of  the  colored 
people  of  the  South.  I  instance  here  his  exertions  in  favor  of 
legislation  for  the  relief  of  depositors  of  the  Freedman's  Savings 
Bank. 

Mr.  Speaker,  it  would  afford  me  a  mournful  satisfaction  to  speak 
longer  of  the  virtues  of  the  departed;  of  his  high  Christian  charac 
ter;  of  his  identification  with  numerous  philanthropic  and  chari 
table  enterprises  at  home ;  of  the  lack  of  anything  like  partisan 
bitterness  in  his  nature ;  of  his  statesmanlike  views  of  public  duty ; 
of  the  magnetism  of  his  nature,  which  captivated  all  those  with 
whom  he  came  in  contact;  and  of  his  love  of  country  and  his 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.    RANDALL,  OF  PENNSYLVANIA.  11 

devotion  to  her  interests.  But  I  will  leave  these  topics  to  others. 
Suffice  it  to  say  of  him,  in  conclusion,  what  is  better  than  all  else, 
that,  living  in  Christian  faith,  he  died  in  the  full  confidence  of  a 
Christian's  hope,  awaiting  the  resurrection  of  the  just. 


Address  of  Mr.  RANDALL,  of  Pennsylvania. 

Mr.  SPEAKER  :  Almost  from  the  first  moment  of  my  meeting  Mr. 
O'CONNOR  I  was  impressed  with  the  fact  that  he  was  one  of  those 
true  men  who  earnestly  seek  to  know  the  exact  condition  of  affairs, 
and  then,  after  becoming  convinced  of  what  duty  commanded, 
followed  with  fearless  courage  the  convictions  forced  upon  him. 

Coming  here  after  a  war  which  had  resulted  most  disastrously 
for  his  State  so  far  as  those  were  concerned  who  had  engaged 
against  the  power  of  the  Union,  he  never  stopped  to  repine,  but 
with  unflagging  industry  and  unvarying  courtesy  did  all  he  could 
to  make  the  most  of  his  opportunities.  Indeed,  sir,  now  looking 
back  upon  the  recent  past,  I  cannot  recall  any  man  who  more  sin 
cerely  accepted  the  results  of  the  civil  conflict,  or  who  more  ear 
nestly  endeavored  to  secure  for  his  people  a  new  future,  and  so  to 
utilize  their  mental  and  material  resources  as  to  fix  them  again  in 
prosperity  and  cordial  union  with  their  fellow-citizens  of  the  other 
States. 

He  obtained  respect  and  standing  on  his  advent  in  the  Forty- 
sixth  Congress  by  refined  manners  and  gentlemanly  bearing.  He 
modestly  took  the  positions  on  committees  which  were  assigned  to 
him,  and  won  the  confidence  and  applause  of  his  associates  by  the 
industry,  care,  and  ability  which  he  displayed  in  the  discharge  of 
the  duties  imposed  upon  him.  He  desired  to  be  useful  rather  than 
ornamental,  and  each  day  the  House  was  in  session  he  was  promptly 
in  attendance,  save  when  ill-health  prevented,  anxious  only  to  do 
the  best  he  could  toward  his  share  of  the  labors  imposed  upon  the 


12    LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

Representatives  of  the  people.  And  yet,  sir,  his  mind  was  stored 
with  learning  and  his  fervid  imagination  prompted  to  an  eloquence 
which  shook  many  an  audience  with  the  storm  of  applause.  But 
here,  in  the  fierce  contest  of  antagonistic  and  conflicting  interests, 
he  was  wary  and  eager  to  secure  for  his  constituents  the  highest 
success  their  circumstances  would  afford.  He  was  staunch  and 
faithful  as  a  friend.  His  word  once  passed  was  as  inviolable  as 
faith  itself.  Well  I  knew  this,  and  deeply  I  lamented  his  loss. 

Mr.  Speaker,  the  burdens  imposed  upon  the  Representatives  of 
the  people  are  numberless  and  the  cares  which  accompany  them  most 
oppressive,  while  the  reward  for  "days  filled  with  labor  and  nights 
devoid  of  ease"  is  so  inadequate,  that  public  life  would  be  without 
enticement  if  it  were  not  for  the  devotion  of  friends  like  Mr. 
O'CONNOR.  I  deeply  mourn  his  loss,  for  no  man  had  a  truer 
friend ;  one  whose  fidelity  never  wavered,  whose  heart  never  sank, 
however  untoward  the  future  might  seem. 

I  mourn  not  only  for  a  faithful  friend  and  wise  adviser,  but  I 
mourn  the  loss  of  a  brave-hearted  American  Representative,  whose 
ambition  was  not  only  to  behold  his  State  one  of  the  most  prosper 
ous  in  the  Union,  but  it  reached  higher  and  was  nobler  in  that,  it 
taught  to  see  his  whole  country  leading  the  van  of  nations  toward 
that  civilization  which  crowns  not  the  few,  but  elevates  the  masses 
to  that  comfort  which  comes  from  thriving  industry,  good  order, 
and  well-established  justice. 

His  domestic  life  was  that  which  becomes  a  gentleman.  He  was 
the  head  of  a  happy  home,  the  proud  father  of  a  devoted  family. 
To  it  his  loss  is  irreparable.  But  to  his  children  the  inheritance  of 
an  unstained  name  and  the  record  of  an  honorable  public  service 
are  better  than  gold  and  brighter  than  diamonds.  In  these  memo 
rial  services  I  could  not  say  less,  but  my  heart  has  feelings  for  our 
dead  associate  which  wrords  are  powerless  to  express.  An  honest 
man,  a  staunch  friend,  a  true,  brave-hearted  patriot,  has  gone. 


.  I  /  *  IfRVSS  OF  MR.  BOV  'MA  .V,  OF  MASS  A  CH I SETTS.  1 3 


Address  of  Mr.  BOWMAN,  of  Massachusetts. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  I  am  glad  to  join  with  my  fellow-members  in 
otll-ring  my  tribute  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  him  in  whose  honor 
these  services  are  held  to-day.  When  one  has  deserved  well  of  his 
country;  has  honestly  and  faithfully  worked  for  its  interest;  has 
laboriously  and  conscientiously  performed  the  duties  of  his  office  as 
a  member  of  Congress,  it  is  fitting  that  we  should  turn  aside  for  at 
least  a  few  moments  from  the  duties  of  the  hour  and  place  on  per 
petual  record  our  testimonials  of  respect,  affection,  and  esteem.  It 
is  the  last  service  which  we  can  render  for  him ;  it  is  a  service  which 
our  deceased  friend  well  merited,  so  that  we  can  perform  it  not  as  a 
mere  matter  of  custom  or  form  of  duty,  but  because  his  pleasant 
and  genial  disposition,  his  kindness  of  heart,  his  integrity  of  char 
acter,  and  his  industry  and  faithfulness  in  the  discharge  of  duty, 
rendered  it  for  him  a  just  due,  and  for  us  a  consolation  and  sad 
pleasure  that  we  can  honestly  bestow  it. 

Mr.  O'CONNOR  and  I  came  to  the  last  Congress  as  new  members, 
and  it  may  perhaps  be  considered  as  our  misfortune  that  we  were 
assigned  to  the  laborious  and  somewhat  thankless  duties  of  the 
Committee  on  Claims.  Coming  from  widely  separated  sections  of 
the  country,  strangers  to  each  other,  and  of  different  political  faiths, 
it  might  seem  as  if  we  had  no  thoughts  or  interests  in  common ;  but 
a  few  weeks  had  hardly  passed  before  a  friendly  intimacy  grew  up 
between  us  which  continued  until  his  death,  and  which  I  shall 
always  cherish  as  among  the  pleasant  recollections  of  my  Congres 
sional  life. 

I  do  not  think  that  one  could  come  into  close  contact  with  Mr. 
O'CONNOR  without  finding  his  respect  for  him  rapidly  grow  into 
affection.  Although  he  was  firm  and  decided  in  his  views,  he  had 
respect  for  the  opinions  of  others,  however  widely  different  from 


14  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

his  own.  He  never  allowed  opinions  to  blossom  out  and  mature 
into  bigotry.  His  judgment  of  what  was  right  never  ran  into  the 
narrow  ruts  of  intolerance,  and  the  sharpest  political  controversy 
or  the  widest  differences  of  opinion  never  caused  in  him  bitterness  of 
feeling  or  personal  animosities.  I  doubt  if  our  friend  could  under 
any  circumstances  have  been  a  good  hater;  he  was  too  kind  in 
heart  and  gentle  in  disposition.  After  all  it  is  perhaps  the  highest 
praise  which  you  can  bestow  upon  a  man  to  say  he  is  a  gentleman, 
not  in  the  modern  and  corrupted  meaning  of  the  word,  which  by 
usage  has  seemed  to  apply  only  to  wealth,  position,  appearance, 
manners,  or  other  external  quali:ias,  but  in  the  original  and  higher 
meaning,  that  one  is  a  gentleman;  one  who,  however  strong  and 
firm  and  unyielding  and  brave  in  the  cause  of  right  and  principle, 
yet  has  that  gentleness  of  manner  and  kindness  of  heart  which 
always  has  regard  to  the  opinions  and  feelings  and  desires  and  com 
fort  of  others.  Such  a  gentleman  in  the  highest  and  best  and 
truest  sense  of  the  word  our  brother  member  was.  He  disliked  to 
do  a  harsh  thing;  he  hated  to  say  a  harsh  word,  and  always  he 
would  rather  say  good  of  a  man  than  evil. 

He  preferred  to  apologize  for  and  excuse  the  faults  or  foibles  of 
others,  rather  than  to  enlarge  upon  them.  What  impressed  me 
most  in  my  intercourse  with  him  was  his  unfailing  good  nature,  his 
geniality  of  disposition,  his  kindness  in  word  and  act.  His  impul 
siveness  did  not  cover  petulance,  nor  his  earnestness  degenerate  into 
anger  or  impatience,  and  when  in  the  latter  days  of  the  last  Con 
gress  his  failing  health  kept  him  away  from  many  of  the  meetings 
of  the  committee,  I  am  sure  there  could  have  been  none  whose 
pleasant  face  and  pleasant  words  would  have  been  more  missed. 

But  his  kindness  of  disposition  did  not  degenerate  into  weakness, 
and  his  pleasant  manners  were  no  proof  of  a  soft  and  feeble  nature. 
There  was  in  him  a  sturdiness  of  character  and  a  force  and  power 
of  manhood  which  would  prevent  him  from  improperly  yielding  in 


<H-'  Ml!.   lS(HfMA.\,   OF  MASSACHUSETTS.  15 


those  things  wherever  his  amiability  and  desire  to  please  might 
tempt  him  to  give  way.  I  am  sure  that  he  always  tried  to  do  the 
right  thing,  that  he  meant  to  do  what  was  just  and  fair  and  honest, 
and  that  if  he  had  once  found  out  what  he  deemed  to  be  the  right 
path,  neither  the  desire  to  please  friend  nor  to  punish  foe  would 
swerve  him  from  it.  I  always  had  great  respect  for  his  plain  and 
steady  honesty  of  purpose,  and  however  much  I  differed  from  him 
(and  we  did  differ  widely  on  many  subjects),  I  always  and  justly 
gave  him  credit  for  sincerity  and  a  desire  to  be  right  and  to  do  right. 
I  could  not  sympathize  with  some  of  his  views,  yet  I  respected 
them  and  knew  that  he  held  them  honestly  and  sincerely,  and  it  is 
always  easy  to  "agree  to  disagree"  without  any  interruption  to  the 
wannest  friendship  where  one  has  respect  for  the  motives  and  feel 
ings  of  the  one  from  whom  he  differs. 

The  duties  of  the  Committee  on  Claims  are  not  particularly  pleas 
ant.  They  call  for  quiet,  hard,  and  unobtrusive  work,  which  the 
public  care  little  for  and  which  does  not  attract  public  notice  or  lift 
the  worker  up  before  the  public  gaze.  About  the  only  reward  it 
can  bring  to  the  member  is  the  consciousness  of  performing  neces 
sary  duties  well  and  honestly,  and  it  does  not  blossom  out  into  fame 
nor  make  his  name  known  to  the  people,  as  important  work  on 
what  may  be  called  a  public  committee  frequently  does.  Yet  the 
duties  thus  imposed  upon  him  our  friend  assumed  with  as  much 
industry,  zealousness,  and  perseverance  as  if  he  was  by  their  perform 
ance  treading  the  pathway  to  fame  or  other  personal  reward.  He  was 
a  good  lawyer,  and  (what  is  by  no  means  synonymous)  had  good 
common  sense  and  a  wise  judgment.  The  mere  letter  of  the  law 
could  not  with  him  be  allowed  to  destroy  equity  and  justice,  nor  on  the 
other  hand  could  his  instincts  of  benevolence  and  the  perhaps  piti 
able  cases  of  suffering  which  might  be  brought  to  his  notice  induce 
him  to  forget  what  was  right  toward  the  government,  or  to  be 
false  to  his  duties  as  a  member  of  Congress  and  one  of  the  guard- 


16          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

ians  of  the  interests  of  his  country.  In  presenting  the  cases  com 
mitted  to  his  charge,  either  in  committee  or  in  the  House,  by  written 
report  or  by  speech,  he  was  compact,  forcible,  logical,  and  at  times 
eloquent.  He  understood  the  principles  underlying  the  cases,  and 
was  forcible  in  presenting  them.  His  report,  as  a  member  of  the 
Committee  on  Civil  Service  Reform  of  the  last  Congress,  upon  the 
question  of  the  reference  of  all  private  claims  before  Congress  to 
the  Court  of  Claims,  was  a  thorough  and  forcible  presentation  of 
that  subject.  He  did  good  work  and  hard  work  in  committee  and 
House,  and  was  ail  active,  industrious,  and  conscientious  legislator. 
For  his  family  we  have  sympathy;  for  ourselves,  the  pleasant 
memories  of  him  who  was  with  us  during  the  many  mouths  of  the 
last  Congress ;  for  him,  congratulations.  For  surely  it  is  well  with 
a  man,  and  is  the  best,  if  somewhere  in  the  hereafter  he  can  feel 
that  all  life's  troubles  and  toils  and  sufferings  are  over  and  he  is  safe 
beyond  their  reach  and  has  earned  his  rest,  and  that  he  has  gone 
from  life  to  death,  or  rather  perhaps  from  death  unto  life,  with  the 
respect  of  those  who  knew  him  and  by  them  sincerely  mourned. 


Address  of  Mr.  MAGINNIS,  of  Montana. 

Mr.  SPEAKER  :  Among  all  the  friends  whom  I  have  met  upon 
this  floor,  behind  whose  disappearing  forms  have  closed  the  iron 
gates  of  death,  I  cherish  with  particular  affection  the  memory  of 
M.  P.  O'CONNOR.  His  frank  and  generous  nature,  his  cordial, 
kindly  ways,  his  unfailing  courtesy,  won  all  who  came  close  to  him. 
There  was  between  us  also  that  community  of  sentiment  which  comes 
of  a  common  sympathy  with  the  sorrows  and  the  aspirations  of  the 
race  from  which  we  both  have  sprung.  Indeed,  I  first  became 
intimate  with  Mr.  O'CONNOR  at  the  time  when  the  starving  people 
of  Ireland  were  stretching  in  piteous  appeal  their  wasted  hands 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  M A  GIN N IS,  OF  MONTANA.  17 

across  the  rolling  waves  and  asking  the  generous  people  of  this 
happy  hind  to  save  them  from  death  and  despair,  produced  by  long 
\vars  of  misgovernment  and  oppression.  We  both  were  members 
of  the  committee  of  reception  appointed  under  the  resolution  which 
gave  Mr.  Parnell  the  use  of  this  Hall,  in  order  that  he  might  tell 
the  Representatives  of  the  American  people  ^of  the  miseries  of  his 
native  land,  and  explain  the  methods  of  reform  for  which  he  was 
pleading. 

Later,  I  was  present  at  a  banquet  over  which  Mr.  O'CONNOR 
presided.  I  shall  never  forget  the  eloquent  speech  in  which  he 
responded  to  the  first  toast,  or  the  ready,  graceful,  appropriate 
way  in  which  he  called  out  and  introduced  subsequent  speakers. 
I  never  met  a  more  charming  or  eloquent  host.  I  was,  of  course, 
deeply  interested.  Coming  from  a  new  land,  among  whose  lower 
ing  mountains  and  wide-stretching  valleys  there  is  room  for  untold 
millions  of  people;  living  under  a  government  that  takes  infinite 
pains  to  protect  the  claim  of  the  humblest  settler,  and  to  measure 
and  define  and  patent  to  any  settler  a  farm  and  a  home  who  lives 
upon  it  for  five  years,  I  could  scarcely  comprehend  the  fact  that  in 
another  land,  homes  that  had  been  occupied,  and  little  farms  that 
had  been  tilled,  for  generation  after  generation,  might  be  lost  to 
those  born  and  reared  upon  them  through  the  misfortunes  of  an 
adverse  season  or  the  failure  of  a  single  crop  or  the  unjust  exac 
tions  of  an  avaricious  landlord.  And  I  heartily  sympathized  with 
the  devoted  young  member  of  Parliament  whom  we  entertained  ; 
a  gentleman  who  is  the  leader  of  his  people ;  who,  under  a  free 
government,  would  be  the  premier  of  his  country,  but  who  is  now 
in  jail  under  an  arbitrary  and  despotic  act  which  requires  no  charge 
and  permits  of  no  trial. 

As  a  member  of  this  House  Mr.  O'CONNOR  was  devoted  to  any 
duty  that  was  assigned  to  him.  I  never  knew  a  member  more 

anxious  to  serve  his  constituents.     It  was  painfully  evident  during 
2o 


18          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

the  closing  days  of  the  last  Congress  that  his  health  was  in  a  most 
precarious  condition,  but  he  remained  at  his  desk  day  after  day 
and  endeavored  to  accomplish  the  work  that  was  pressing  upon 
him.  When  the  Congress  dissolved  he  sought  his  home  in  the 
South,  confident  that  the  balmy  air  of  his  own  beautiful  city  by 
the  sea  would  restore  his  vigor  and  health  again.  I  parted  from 
him  in  the  hope  of  receiving  his  kindly  grasp  and  meeting  his 
genial  smile  on  my  return.  I  was  far  away  in  the  interior  of  the 
continent  when  I  accidentally  heard  the  news  of  his  death.  I  was 
shocked  and  grieved  beyond  expression,  and  the  pain  of  it  has 
never  left  me.  I  can  only  give  it  expression  in  this  inadequate 
tribute  of  my  regard  for  the  memory  of  a  kind  friend,  an  honest 
and  an  able  man. 


Address  of  Mr.  LINDSEY,  of  Maine. 

Mr.  SPEAKER  :  My  acquaintance  with  Mr.  O'CONNOR  was  short, 
commencing  with  his  entry  into  the  Forty-sixth  Congress ;  yet  it 
happened  we  were  thrown  much  together  in  committee,  and  I 
learned  to  know  him  there  well.  My  brief  acquaintance  does  not 
warrant  me  in  speaking,  as  others  have  fitly  done,  of  loss  sustained 
by  family  relatives  and  locality,  or  of  the  excellence  he  exhibited 
in  the  relation  of  husband,  father,  friend,  and  citizen ;  but  I  must 
content  myself  in  saying  only  a  word  as  I  knew  him  here.  In  the 
Forty-sixth  Congress  Mr.  O'CoxxoR  was  assigned  to  the  Commit 
tee  on  Claims,  where  I  may  say  he  was  respected  and  appreciated 
by  all  his  associates.  In  that  committee  he  knew  no  party,  no 
section,  no  man.  He  examined  the  matters  committed  to  him  for 
the  cause  alone,  and  determined  them  upon  what  he  regarded  as 
sound  and  well-settled  principles  of  law.  I  am  sure  all  his  associ 
ates  will  bear  cheerful  witness  to  his  earnest  effort  to  do  his  full 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.   BELTZHOOVER,  OF  PENNSYLVANIA.       19 

duty  in  a  committee  overwhelmed  with  business  of  a  kind  that 
attracts  but  little  public  attention  and  finds  small  favor  in  this 
Mouse.  To  what  position  he  might  have  attained  with  larger 
service  and  more  conspicuous  place  it  is  now  useless  to  speculate. 
His  service  here  is  completed.  The  work  committed  to  him  to  do 
was  faithfully  done.  And  it  is  but  fact  to  say  that  those  who 
knew  him  best  respected  him  most. 


Address  of  Mr.  BELTZHOOVER,  of  Pennsylvania. 

Mr.  SPEAKER  :  It  is  an  immemorial  and  universal  custom 
among  men  to  honor  the  memories  of  their  departed  friends. 
This  sacred  usage  springs  from  the  purest  emotions  of  the  soul, 
and  goes  forth  in  a  thousand  various  forms  to  elevate  and  beautify 
all  that  was  great  and  good  in  the  dead,  and  to  extenuate  and  con 
ceal  all  that  was  frail  and  batl.  The  method  of  expressing  this 
sentiment  of  respect  for  their  dead  is  an  index  of  the  civilization 
of  nations,  extending  from  the  rude  symbolic  ceremonies  and 
mound-burials  of  the  savage  to  the  elegant  and  eloquent  eulogies 
which  embalm  the  memories  of  the  departed  in  the  literature  and 
song  of  the  most  cultured  peoples.  The  history  of  all  the  efforts 
of  mankind  on  this  subject  unerringly  teach,  however,  that  there 
is  no  earthly  immortality  for  the  dead  except  in  the  imperishable 
keeping  of  written  language.  The  marble  pillars  set  up  by  Sesos- 
tris  to  mark  his  conquests  have  dissolved  into  dust.  The  great 
tumulus  over  the  heroes  on  the  plain  of  Marathon  is  almost  gone. 
The  stone  lion  at  the  pass  of  Thermopylae  and  the  statues  and 
emblems  which  were  intended  to  perpetuate  the  names  of  the 
mighty  men  of  the  past  have  all  perished  amid  the  indistinguish 
able  wrecks  of  mortality.  The  tombs  of  Abraham  and  ^Eneas 
and  of  Moses  and  Romulus  are  with  those  of  the  mighty  host  of 
sleeping  demi-gods  which  are  marked  on  the  world's  great  battle- 


20          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

fields  with  the  humblest  and  meekest — unknown!  The  highest 
and  most  enduring  tribute,  therefore,  which  we  can  pay  to  a  dead 
friend  is  in  the  earnest,  fervent  words  of  praise  with  which  we 
commit  the  record  of  his  character  and  virtues  to  the  unyielding 
embrace  of  history.  Impressed  and  influenced  by  this  belief,  I 
earnestly  and  affectionately  join  with  those  who  desire  to  express 
their  respect  and  admiration  for  the  life  and  services  of  one  who 
was  lately  a  distinguished  member  of  this  body.  Hon.  MICHAEL 
P.  O'CONNOR  was  born  on  the  29th  day  of  September,  1831,  at 
Beaufort,  South  Carolina,  and  died  at  Charleston,  in  that  State,  on 
the  26th  day  of  April,  1881.  He  was  a  man  of  strong  intellectual 
power,  of  liberal  education,  an  able  lawyer,  a  skillful  debater,  an 
industrious  and  efficient  legislator,  an  affectionate  husband  and 
parent,  and  a  courteous  gentleman.  He  had  a  fine  personal  ap 
pearance,  a  strong,  compact  frame,  a  large,  well-formed,  brainy 
head,  and  a  scholarly  face. 

He  was  a  hard  student  from  his  youth  to  his  grave.  He  was 
educated  at  Saint  John's  College,  situated  at  Ford  ham,  now  a  part 
of  New  York  City,  which,  from  the  character  of  its  organization, 
its  location,  surroundings,  and  numerous  and  varied  facilities,  is 
one  of  the  very  best  educational  institutions  in  the  country.  Its 
founder  and  head  was  the  venerable  Archbishop  Hughes,  and  its 
president  during  Mr.  O'CONNOR'S  attendance  was  the  distinguished 
Cardinal  McCloskey.  With  a  complete  literary  equipment,  he 
entered  the  legal  profession  at  Charleston,  which  has  one  of  the 
best  and  ablest  bars  in  the  State.  He  was  elected  to  the  legisla 
ture  of  South  Carolina  for  seven  consecutive  years.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Forty-sixth  Congress,  and  served  his  full  term.  He 
was  re-elected  to  the  Forty-seventh  Congress,  but  died  during  the 
interval  between  the  adjournment  of  the  last  and  the  meeting  of 
the  present  session.  In  the  Forty-sixth  Congress  he  served  on  the 
Committees  on  Claims,  Civil  Service  Reform,  and  Labor.  Neither 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  BELTZHOOVER,  OF  PENNSYLVANIA.       21 

of  those  committees  and  the  work  assigned  to  them  afford  any  con 
siderable  opportunities  for  forensic  display  or  the  development  of 
the  peculiar  qualities  of  statesmanship.  Neither  of  them  furnished 
a  theater  for  the  exhibition  of  the  abilities  and  experience  of  Mr. 
O'CONNOR.  But  he  wrought  faithfully  where  fortune  placed  him, 
and  it  is  not  unfair  to  any  member  of  the  Committee  on  Claims  to 
say  that  no  one  on  that  committee  surpassed  him  in  the  industry 
and  ability  and  success  with  which  he  performed  his  duties  on  that 
his  chief  committee. 

I  remember  well  his  report  and  argument  on  the  bill  for  the 
relief  of  L.  Madison  Day.  This  claim  rested  on  an  apparently 
equitable  ground,  and  involved  the  discussion  of  some  interesting 
questions  of  constitutional  and  statute  law.  But,  in  addition  to 
other  objections,  there  was  an  insuperable,  although  by  no  means 
patent,  technical  and  legal  barrier  in  the  way  of  the  claim.  Mr. 
O'CONNOR'S  report  accompanying  the  bill  was  lengthy  and  able, 
and  came  as  near  making  a  feeble  appear  to  be  a  faultless  case 
as  rare  tact  and  ingenuity  and  legal  acumen  could  do.  When 
the  bill  came  up  for  final  passage  in  the  House  he  made  a  strong 
and  effective  speech  in  its  favor,  still  further  refining  the  discrimi 
nations  by  which  he  ingeniously  labored  to  reason  away  and  break 
the  force  of  the  decisions  against  the  legality  of  the  claim.  The 
tide  was  clearly  in  favor  of  the  bill.  A  number  of  lawyers  who 
saw  fehe  weakness  of  the  case  and  the  obstacles  in  its  way  inter 
rupted  him,  myself  among  the  number,  briefly  suggesting  the 
grounds  of  difficulty.  At  this  critical  period  of  the  debate  one 
of  the  most  skillful  and  ready  men  of  the  House,  Mr.  Hammond, 
of  Georgia,  entered  the  discussion,  and  by  a  short  and  incisive 
argument  turned  the  current  against  the  bill.  Mr.  O'CONNOR 
promptly  obtained  an  adjournment,  and  when  the  discussion  was 
renewed  on  the  following  day  he  came  fresh  to  the  contest,  and, 
fighting  gallantly,  was  only  beaten  by  one  or  two  votes. 


22          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

If  I  had  seen  him  manage  a  hundred  legal  battles  I  could  perhaps 
have  had  a  better  idea  of  the  extent  of  his  versatility  and  resources, 
but  I  could  not  have  been  more  convinced  of  his  marked  force  and 
adroitness  as  a  lawyer  and  of  his  tact  and  readiness  as  a  debater  and 
parliamentarian.  One  of  the  most  learned  and  eloquent  men  of  the 
last  generation  declared  that  he  could  tell  from  hearing  any  man 
talk  fifteen  minutes  whether  he  had  a  classical  education.  So  it 
seems  to  me  that  any  person  with  reasonable  powers  of  discrimina 
tion  could  not  listen  to  Mr.  O'CONNOR  during  the  progress  of  even 
a  brief  debate  without  being  deeply  impressed  with  the  elegance 
and  force  of  his  language  and  the  cogency  of  his  argument.  The 
career  of  a  new  member  of  Congress  can  only  be  judged  of  in  this 
way.  He  has  few  opportunities,  and  for  these  he  waits  like  a  soldier 
for  battle.  He  must  seize  the  current  when  it  serves,  and  if  he 
brings  to  the  only  occasion  presented  in  his  whole  term  all  the  ability 
and  skill  which  a  master  of  the  subject  could  be  expected  to  command, 
he  deserves  more  praise  than  he  who  monopolizes  the  Record  with 
daily  lucubrations.  Mr.  O'CoNNc  >R  was  occasionally  called  to  the 
chair  by  the  Speaker  during  the  Forty -sixth  Congress,  and  always 
presided  with  dignity  and  ability.  He  was  an  attentive,  industrious, 
and  useful  member  of  the  House.  He  was  always  at  his  commit 
tees  during  their  sittings  and  in  the  House  during  its  sessions.  He 
was  a  gentleman  of  rare  courtesy  and  politeness  in  his  intercourse 
with  his  fellow-members  and  with  all  men.  He  was  devoted  to  his 
family,  and  spoke  of  them  often  with  the  greatest  pride  and  deepest 
affection,  and  they  reciprocated  his  love  by  being  fondly  attached 
to  him. 

With  a  strong  mind,  a  liberal  literary  and  legal  culture,  an 
extensive  experience  and  practice  at  the  bar,  a  long  service  in  the 
legislature  of  his  State,  and  an  honorable  record  of  service  for  a 
full  term  in  this  the  highest  legislative  body  in  the  world,  thoroughly 
armed  and  prepared,  he  had  just  stepped  out  into  the  grand  arena 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.   KELTZBOOVKR,  Or  PEyNSYLt'AMA.       23 

of  a  bright  career  in  the  public  service  of  the  nation.  But  in  the 
prime  of  his  manhood  and  in  the  noonday  of  his  hope  and  ambition 
he  was  suddenly  summoned  to  the  gloomy  shades  of  the  unseen 
world.  I  well  remember  meeting  him  in  the  chamber  in  the  rear 
of  the  Hall  of  the  House  on  one  of  the  last  days  of  last  session. 
He  spoke  a  few  words  in  reference  to  the  contest  for  his  seat,  which 
was  then  pending  before  the  Election  Committee.  He  then  grasped 
my  hand  in  his  cordial  manner  to  bid  me  good-by,  and  said  :  "  My 
friend,  I  am  not  well;  I  must  go  home  and  rest."  He  went  home, 
and  rested  there  in  that  long,  unbroken  sleep  which  knows  no 
waking.  The  beautiful  country  and  balmy  sunshine  and  quiet 
home  could  not  stay  the  inflexible  purpose  of  an  unpropitious  destiny. 
The  great  common  law  of  human  hope  and  human  ambition,  which 
is  symbolized  by  the  broken  column  and  unfinished  work,  was 
rigidly  followed  and  enforced,  and  he  was  cut  down  in  obedience  to 
its  inexorable  decree.  There  are  a  few  favorites  of  this  mysterious 
and  revengeful  Xemesis,  whose  names  stand  out  at  long  intervals  on 
the  highway  of  history,  who  seem  to  have  lived  out  the  purpose  of 
existence  in  seeing  the  fulfillment  and  enjoying  the  fruition  of  a 
life's  work  of  sacrifice  and  toil  and  endeavor.  But  these  exceptions 
only  serve  to  justify  humanity  in  its  mutinous  mutterings  of  rebell 
ion  against  the  common  lot.  The  great  and  innumerable  hosts 
which  struggle  on  the  upward  road  to  fame  are  lost  amid  its  inhos 
pitable  crags  and  treacherous  steeps. 

The  greatest  and  proudest  queen  that  ever  swayed  a  scepter  on 
the  earth,  after  she  had  exhausted  all  the  resources  of  power,  and 
there  was  no  other  way  to  illustrate  her  glory  and  grandeur,  com 
manded  a  great  and  gorgeous  palace  of  ice  to  be  built  in  her  cold 
northern  home.  With  vast  expense  and  skill  and  toil  the  mighty 
structure  was  reared,  with  its  lofty  columns  and  spacious  halls  and 
numerous  chambers — an  imposing  and  marvelous  creation  of  human 
power  and  restless  ambition.  Within  it  the  royal  court  assembled 


24          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

as  in  a  palace  radiant  with  measureless  myriads  of  diamonds.  No 
other  queen  ever  held  her  high  estate  in  so  rare  and  so  brilliant  an 
abode.  But  the  hot  and  certain  summer  came  and  breathed  upon 
it,  and  the  cold  and  glittering  and  wondrous  pile,  with  all  its  grand 
eur,  dissolved  like  a  vision  of  beauty,  and  left  not  a  wreck  behind. 
There  is  no  fitter  picture  of  the  visionary  structures  which  fill  the 
vain  and  dreamy  realm  of  human  ambition;  but  it  is  the  old,  old 
story  which  reiteration  has  made  stale  and  unprofitable. 

And  yet  ambition,  luring  its  infatuated  followers  to  disappoint 
ment  and  death,  will  ever  remain  the  strongest  incentive  to  human 
endeavor.  It  is  the  mainspring  of  all  the  greatest  efforts  of  human 
heroism ;  it  is  the  hopeless  but  determined  and  God-like  reaching 
out  of  the  human  soul  after  the  Infinite,  of  which  it  is  a  fragment 
and  with  which  it  struggles  onward  and  ever  to  unite  again.  With 
Thomas  Carlyle : 

It  is  not  to  taste  things  sweet,  but  to  do  noble  and  true  things  and  vindi 
cate  himself  under  God's  heavens  a  God-made  man,  that  the  poorest  son  of 
Adam  dimly  longs.  Show  him  the  way  of  doing  that,  the  dullest  day-drudge 
kindles  into  a  hero.  They  wrong  man  greatly  who  say  he  is  to  be  seduced  by 
ease.  Difficulty,  abnegation,  martyrdom,  death,  are  the  allurements  that  act 
on  the  heart  of  man.  Kindle  the  inner,  genial  life  of  him,  you  have  a  llame 
that  burns  up  all  lower  considerations. 

This  was  the  ambition  which  did  not  "  tire  with  toil  nor  cloy  with 
power,"  which  inspired  and  animated  our  dead  friend  in  the  battle 
of  life.  He  had  a  right  to  be  ambitious.  He  had  it  by  inherit 
ance  from  a  race  of  the  bravest  and  best  among  the  sons  of  men. 
He  bore  a  name  which  is  linked  with  some  of  the  purest  triumphs 
of  genius  and  liberty.  He  was  born  and  reared  in  a  State  whose 
normal  condition  was  revolution,  and  on  the  altars  of  whose  house 
hold  gods  there  burned  the  undying  fires  of  an  all-consuming 
ambition.  He  bore  the  escutcheon  of  that  grand  old  historic 
State  whose  chiefest  glory  in  history  will  be  that  she  was  the 
mother  not  only  of  great  but  of  ambitious  men.  He  maintained 
her  fair  fame  unsullied  amid  the  sneers  and  shafts  of  spite  and 


ADDRESS  OF  M K.  ELLIS,  OF  LOUISIANA.  25 

revenge  and  contumely  which  mock  her  fallen  fortunes  and  deso 
lated  fields,  and  sleeps  now  with  her  honored  dead  in  her  own 
proud  and  sunny  clime. 

On  his  flower-entwined  tomb  let  there  be  written  that  his  ambi 
tion  was  to  nobly  do  the  work  of  life;  to  faithfully  serve  his  country 
and  his  friends ;  to  act  well  his  part ;  to  struggle  ever 

With  an  earnest  soul, 

For  some  great  end  from  this  low  world  afar ; 
And  still  upward  travel  though  he  miss  the  goal 

And  strav — but  toward  a  star. 


Address  of  Mr.  ELLIS,  of  Louisiana. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  I  had  thought  that  silence  would  best  attest  the 
affectionate  remembrance  in  which  I  hold  the  honored  dead,  whose 
memory  consecrates  this  hour;  but  the  wishes  of  his  friends,  sec 
onded  by  the  strong  demands  of  my  own  heart,  prompt  me  to  ask 
the  brief  indulgence  of  the  House  while  I  pay  to  his  great  worth  a 
feeble  tribute. 

That  was  a  sad  spring  day  to  me,  that  April  day  of  last  year,  in 
the  soft  light  of  which  I  read  the  fateful  dispatch  that  told  me  that 
the  great  and  good  heart  of  MICHAEL  PATRICK  O'CONNOR  had 
grown  cold  and  still  forever.  It  is  true,  sir,  that  I  had  not  known 
him  very  long,  but  yet  long  enough  to  know  him  well  and  to  have 
learned  to  admire  him  as  one  of  the  manliest,  gentlest  men  I  had 
ever  met — long  enough  to  have  learned  to  love  one  of  the  noblest 
and  most  generous  hearts  that  ever  moved  the  currents  of  a  human 
life. 

I  formed  his  acquaintance  when  he  came  here  to  take  his  place  in 
the  Forty-sixth  Congress,  in  December,  1879,  but  I  was  familiar 
with  his  name  and  reputation  before  I  ever  grasped  his  hand ;  for 
he  had  won  name  and  fame  in  his  own  State  and  among  his  own 
people,  and  was  beloved  and  honored  by  them;  and  his  State  and 


26  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  /'.  O'CONNOR. 

people  had  in  all  of  their  history  been  accustomed  to  look  with 
undazzled  and  uuexaggerated  gaze  upon  great  and  shining  men. 
Their  annals  are  emblazoned  with  the  names  and  deeds  of  their 
Rutledges  and  Pinckneys,  their  McDuffies  and  Calhouus  and 
Haynes  and  Rlietts  and  Thornwells.  Their  standard  of  mental 
culture  and  intellectual  endowment  and  manly  courage  and  self- 
reliance  is  lofty,  and  it  was  no  small  achievement  to  have  pressed 
to  the  front  rank  as  a  leader  of  such  a  people.  But  the  fame  of 
Mr.  O'CONNOR,  passing  the  boundaries  of  South  Carolina,  had 
become  national ;  for  in  a  supreme  moment  in  the  councils  of  his 
party  at  one  of  its  great  national  conventions,  with  the  force  and 
fire  of  a  born  leader,  he  had  thrown  himself  into  the  torrent  of  a 
stormy  debate  that  was  surging  and  swollen  with  the  impassioned 
thought  of  some  of  the  foremost  minds  of  the  Union,  and  had  suc 
cessfully  stemmed  and  calmed  and  controlled  it.  And  the  fame  of 
the  logical  brain  and  the  music-laden  tongue  of  O'CONNOR  had 
gone  to  all  the  States  and  people  of  the  Republic.  And  so  I  was 
prepared  beforehand  to  admire  and  respect  him  for  his  high  intel 
lectual  endowments;  but  when  I  met  him  face  to  face  there  was  a 
something  in  the  warm  clasp  of  his  hand,  in  the  bright,  frank  soul 
that  looked  from  his  open,  honest  eye,  that  said  to  me  "  Let  us  be 
friends";  and  so  we  were  almost  from  the  outset  of  our  acquaint 
ance.  And  that  friendship  soon  ripened  into  that  intimate  confi 
dence  that  is  so  delightful  to  congenial  spirits,  in  the  sacredness  of 
which  men  lay  bare  their  souls  and  their  hearts  to  each  other.  And 
it  grew  all  the  stronger  and  sweeter  during  his  life;  but,  alas!  it 
remains  but  a  sacred  and  beautiful  memory  to  me  now. 

And  now,  sir,  divesting  myself  as  completely  as  I  am  able  of  that 
partiality  with  which  affection  looks  upon  the  memory  of  a  departed 
friend,  let  me  as  briefly  as  I  can  give  to  history  my  estimate  and 
analysis  of  the  character  of  him  whose  memory  consecrates  this 
hour. 


J />/>/;/•»•  01'   M A'.   ELLIS,   Ob'  LOUISIANA.  27 

The  warm,  rich  blood  of  Ireland,  whether  at  its  fountain-head 

or  flowing  out  to  commingle  with  the  life-currents  of  other  peoples, 
has  in  all  history  made  men  to  stir  with  kindling  speech,  to  thrill 
with  ecstatic  song,  to  entrance  with  rapturous  music,  to  die  with 
superb  daring,  to  champion  the  cause  of  the  oppressed  with  sublime 
devotion,  to  live  in  truth  to  their  loves  and  in  faith  to  their  friend 
ships,  and  to  wear  a  sun-smile  in  their  souls  that  carried  light  and 
warmth  and  wit  and  cheer  to  every  scene  upon  which  it  beams. 
And  this  was  the  blood  from  which  O'CONNOR  was  sprung,  and 
aptly  did  he  illustrate  the  noblest  traits  of  the  Irish  race.  In 
nature  and  disposition  he  was  impulsive,  generous,  and  affectionate. 
The  coldness  of  calculating  selfishness  was  all  foreign  to  his  soul. 
He  was  not  a  man  of  policy,  substituting  tact  and  craft  for  courage 
and  directness  and  strength.  Nor  did  his  affection  for  friends  find 
its  origin  in  conscious  weakness  and  dependence.  It  was  rather  the 
impulse  of  a  heart  as  gentle  as  it  was  brave,  as  noble  and  charitable 
as  it  was  fearless  and  true.  His  bearing  among  men  was  a  most 
admirable  commingling  of  manly  dignity,  unassuming  modesty, 
and  knightly  courtesy,  while  the  kindly  smile,  which  was  indeed 
the  sunshine  from  his  soul,  and  the  frank,  cordial  manner  of  his 
address  carried  a  mesmeric  influence  to  all  with  whom  he  came  in 
contact,  and  won  for  him  the  friendship  and  confidence  of  all  who 
knew  him. 

There  was  one  beautiful  trait  in  his  character  that  impressed  me. 
It  was  his  broad-minded  charity  for  the  opinions,  the  faults,  and 
the  foibles  of  men.  I  have  passed  many  hours  with  him  in  the 
fullest  interchange  of  confidential  thought,  and  I  never  heard  him 
speak  uncharitably  of  any  man.  If  he  had  no  word  of  commenda 
tion  he  was  silent.  He  endeavored  to  trace  a  good  and  pure  motive 
in  the  speeches  and  actions  of  all  men,  and  believed  that  men  could 
differ  widely  from  his  views  and  opinions  and  still  be  as  honest  and 
sincere  as  he  realized  himself  to  be. 


28  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICUAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

Mr.  O'CONNOR  was  a  born  orator.  His  speech  was  ready  and 
his  soul  was  full  of  the  true  spirit  of  poetry;  and  the  beautiful  in 
art  and  nature  found  in  him  a  devout  and  constant  worshiper.  And 
so  he  clothed  his  strongest  thought  in  the  drapery  of  chaste  language 
and  poetic  imagery.  He  could  not  believe  that  the  column  was  less 
strong  because  it  was  polished  and  carved  and  sculptured,  nor  that 
the  oak  tree  had  less  of  power  to  defy  the  storm  because  of  the 
green  glory  of  its  garb  or  the  graceful  vine  that  enwreathed  it  with 
fern  and  flower.  Conscious  of  great  gift  of  speech,  he  was  free  from 
the  vanity  that  seeks  ever  to  parade  its  excellences  in  public.  The 
born  orator  hesitates  to  speak  too  often.  Conscious  of  his  power, 
with  the  loftiest  conceptions  of  true  oratory,  with  a  morbid  dread 
lest  he  fail  to  realize  his  ideal,  feeling  that  the  failure  of  genius 
involves  a  fall  the  terrors  of  which  mediocrity  can  never  know, 
because  it  never  dared,  the  conscious  orator  sits  oftentimes  silent, 
while  others  without  gift,  save  of  assurance  and  perseverance,  fill 
senate  halls  with  discordant  clamor.  And  thus  it  often  happens  that 
The  shallows  murmur  while  the  deeps  are  dumb. 

Mr.  O'CONNOR'S  voice  was  rich  and  clear  and  musical;  his 
enunciation  was  distinct  and  perfect;  his  manner  and  gesture  were 
emphatic  and  impressive,  and  polished  sentences  full  freighted  with 
precious  thought  and  clad  with  brilliant  trope  and  glowing  meta 
phor — like  Jove-commissioned  heralds  from  Olympian  portals — 
leapt  from  his  laboring  lips. 

As  a  Representative  he  was  careful,  faithful,  and  painstaking. 
He  was  assiduous  in  looking  after  every  interest  of  his  people  and 
scrupulous  in  attending  to  the  most  trifling  wish  of  his  humblest 
constituent.  A  most  notable  instance  of  his  devotion  to  the  rights 
of  the  poorer  and  humbler  classes  of  his  constituency  were  his 
labors,  not  alone  in  behalf  of  the  colored  people  of  his  own  district, 
but  those  of  the  entire  South,  in  endeavoring  to  induce  the  govern 
ment  to  pay  in  full  the  losses  sustained  by  the  freedmen  in  the 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  ELLIS,  OF  LOUISIANA.  29 

failure  of  the  Freedman's  Savings  and  Trust  Company.  In  that 
good  work  I  was  his  co-laborer,  and  the  brief  which  we  filed  before 
the  Ways  and  Means  Committee,  to  which  the  bill  was  referred, 
was  prepared  by  us  jointly.  I  prepared  the  statement  of  facts  and 
O'CONNOR  wrote  the  argument  upon  the  legal  questions  involved. 
And  that  argument,  upon  a  novel  and  original  proposition,  involv 
ing  the  question  of  the  peculiar  relations  sustained  by  the  govern 
ment  to  the  freedmen  of  the  South  during  the  period  that  elapsed 
between  their  manumission  and  their  enfranchisement,  and  the 
obligation  of  the  government  arising  from  that  relationj  was  one 
of  singular  power,  clearness,  and  cogency,  and  of  itself  enough  to 
rank  Mr.  O'CONNOR  as  one  of  the  foremost  lawyers  of  the  country. 
His  patriotism  was  intense.  With  all  the  fervor  of  his  great 
heart  did  he  love  his  native  State.  The  misfortunes  and  calamities 
that  befell  South  Carolina  from  1861  to  1876  seemed  to  endear  her 
and  her  people  all  the  more  to  his  faithful  soul.  Again  and  again 
has  he  recited  to  me  the  Iliad  of  her  woes,  and  with  more  than  ten 
derness  of  speech  and  voice  discovered  to  me  a  pathetic  and  cling 
ing  devotion  to  her  fortunes  that  prosperity  and  power  and  victory 
would  never  Ijave  commanded,  .and  then  he  would  quote  these 
exquisite  words  of  the  gifted  orator  and  poet-priest,  the  laureate  of 
the  South : 

A  land  without  ruins  is  a  land  without  memories;  a  land  without  memo 
ries  is  a  laud  without  history.  A  land  that  wears  a  laurel  crown  may  be  fair 
to  see;  but  twine  a  few  sad  cypress  leaves  around  the  brow  of  any  land,  and 
l»'  that  laud  barren,  beautiless,  and  bleak,  it  becomes  lovely  in  its  consecrated 
coronet  of  sorrow,  and  it  wins  the  sympathy  of  the  heart  and  of  history. 
Crowns  of  roses  fade,  crowns  of  thorns  endure.  Calvaries  and  crucifixes  take 
the  deepest  hold  on  humanity.  The  triumphs  of  might  are  transient — they 
pass  and  are  forgotten;  the  sufferings  of  right  are  graven  deepest  on  the 
chronicle  of  nations. 

As  a  statesman  he  was  broad,  liberal,  and  progressive.  His  soul 
had  no  patience  with  that  kind  of  statesmanship  which  insists  upon 
holding  an  endless  wake  over  dead  issues — which,  like  Lot's  wife,  is 


30  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

turning  forever  to  look  back  at  the  smouldering  ashes  of  dead  ideas 
that  were  consumed  in  the  fierce  fires  of  civil  war.  He  believed 
that  the  "dead  past  should  bury  its  dead";  he  favored  a  strong 
and  progressive  American  policy;  he  longed  to  see  the  magic  wand 
of  material  development  touch  the  land  of  the  South ;  he  was  an 
enthusiastic  friend  of  all  measures  that  looked  to  the  restoration  of 
the  merchant  marine  of  this  country  and  the  tearing  from  the  mast 
head  of  the  grasping  monopolist  of  the  world's  commerce  the 
proud  title  of  "Mistress  of  the  Sea,"  and  nailing  it  just  under  where 
the  flag  of  our  country  is  floating,  and  the  giving  again  the  glory  of 
that  flag  to  all  the  winds  and  isles  and  stars  of  the  sea.  He  had  no 
patience  with  that  kind  of  statesmanship  which  is  the  child  of  cheap 
demagogy  and  stupid  unprogressiveness,  and  whose  creed  and  code 
are  summed  up  in  the  two  words,  (l  I  object." 

But  last  and  best  of  all,  Mr.  O'CONNOR  was  a  pure,  sincere,  and 
devout  Christian.  He  made  no  noisy  protestation  of  his  faith,  nor 
sought  to  intrude  his  opinions  upon  others;  but  he  boldly  pro 
claimed  the  name  of  the  Nazarene,  and  his  daily  walk  and  speech 
attested  the  belief  of  his  heart;  and  in  this  was  lie  an  example  to 
all  of  us.  * 

I  know  my  own  weakness,  and  how  far  short  I  fall  of  my  own 
duty,  nor  do  I  dare  stand  here  to  admonish  others;  but  professing 
my  undying  faith  in  the  divinity  of  our  holy  religion,  I  do  say  that 
in  the  day  when  unbelief,  unable  to  promise  us  other  light  than 
the  feeble  ray  of  reason,  asks  the  world  to  blot  from  its  sky  the 
star  of  Bethlehem — that  star  which  was  the  guide  and  the  sign  to 
our  ancestors  when  they  planted  the  tree  of  liberty  here  and  watered 
it  with  their  blood  and  tears;  the  star  that  pours  its  lucent  beams 
upon  the  pathway  of  our  fathers  and  mothers  to  guide  their  totter 
ing  footsteps,  and  upon  which  their  beautiful  old  eyes  gaze  in  con 
tented  joy  as  it  beacons  them  homeward  to  perfect  rest;  that  star 
which  lent  its  glory  to  our  marriage  vows  and  cast  a  halo  about  our 


ADDRESS  OF  MI!.  ROltiysOX,  OF  NEW  TORE.  31 

children's  heads  as  they  were  anointed  at  the  baptismal  fount, 
and  dissipated  the  gloom  and  the  sorrow  from  the  graves  of  our 
dead — it  would  be  better  if  more  of  our  strong  men,  of  our  public 
men,  would,  like  my  lamented  friend,  manifest  their  faith  by  their 
works,  and  live  their  religion  in  their  lives,  and  boldly  avow  as  he 
did  their  undying  faith  in  that  only  name  whereby  men  can  be 
saved.  For  the  bravest  and  the  strongest  of  us  at  last  are  but  as 
dust  and  weakness,  and  tottering  along  beneath  our  heavy  burdens, 

Our  dim  eyes  ask  a  beacon  and  our  weary  feet  a  guide, 
And  our  souls,  of  all  life's  mysteries,  seek  the  meaning  and  the  key; 

Lo!  a  cross  gleams  o'er  our  pathway — on  it  hangs  the  crucified — 
And  He  answers  all  our  yearnings  by  the  whisper,  "  Follow  me !" 

O'CoxNOR  heard,  obeyed,  and  followed,  and  found  peace  here; 
and  my  heart's  faith  tells  me  he  has  found  perfect  peace  where  he 
has  gone — beyond  the  shadowy  river. 


Address  of  Mr.  ROBINSON,  of  New  York. 

Mr.  SPEAKER:  I  feel  that  after  the  eloquent  address  we  have 
just  listened  to  from  the  lips  of  the  gentleman  from  Louisiana,  I 
should  perhaps  be  silent.  But  duty  compels  me  to  say  a  word  or 
two. 

Death  is  no  respecter  of  persons.  He  is  a  "black  camel  that 
kneels  at  the  gates  of  all."  He  beats  with  impartial  knockings  at 
the  cabins  of  the  poor  and  palaces  of  kings.  He  crosses  with  equal 
footstep  the  threshold  of  the  peasant  and  the  statesman,  and  hangs 
his  crape  upon  every  door  without  regard  to  rank  or  sex  or  age. 

To-day  we  pause  in  our  pursuit  of  the  shadows  of  which  our  lives 
are  made  up  to  pay  a  tribute  of  respect  to  him  whose  voice  was 
music  and  whose  smile  was  light,  which  we  shall  see  and  hear  no 
more.  I  have  asked  permission,  as  we  bow  our  head  in  sorrow,  to 
mingle  my  voice  for  a  moment  in  the  chorus  of  those  who  sing  his 
praise. 


32     LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

It  seems  but  yesterday  since  I  met  him  here,  in  the  closing  days 
of  the  last  session,  and  he  looked  forward  to  this  Congress  for 
pleasant  intercourse  with  those  who  were  easily  taught  to  love  him, 
hut  he  went  home  to  die,  amid  the  friends  he  loved  and  in  the  State 
he  loved  and  served,  and  left  us  and  the  people  of  our  whole 
country  to  deplore  his  loss. 

Fifty  years  ago  Mr.  O'CONNOR  was  born  in  South  Carolina. 
That  grand  old  Commonwealth  has  given  birth  to  many  of  our 
most  illustrious  statesmen.  No  province  in  the  country  gave  nobler 
names  to  the  cause  of  liberty  than  the  Lynches,  Pinckneys,  and 
Rutledges ;  and  no  State  contributed  to  the  Senate,  in  later  times, 
two  such  intellectual  giants  as  John  C.  Calhoun  and  William  C. 
Preston,  and  amid  the  stars  that  burn  brightest  in  the  glory  of  our 
firmament  South  Carolina  points  with  pride  to  her  Butlers,  Gads- 
dens,  Hamptons,  Haynes,  Hugers,  Legares,  Lowndeses,  McDuffics, 
Middletons,  Pickenses,  and  Sumters.  It  was  Mr.  O'CONNOR'S 
pride  and  honor  to  have  called  such  a  glorious  State  his  mother, 
and  her  sons  his  brothers,  of  whom  he  was  not  unworthy.  New 
York  claims  the  privilege  also  of  calling  him  her  son.  One  of  her 
best  colleges  is  his  Alma  Mater,  from  which  he  graduated  at  the  age 
of  eighteen,  and  returning  to  his  native  State  was  admitted  to  prac 
tice  law  at  twenty-three.  He  had  not  been  long  at  the  Charleston 
bar  till  he  began  to  show  evidences  of  a  genius  worthy  of  his  elder 
brethren.  Nor  was  his  fame  confined  to  the  precincts  of  his  native 
State.  Long  before  he  came  to  Congress  flashes  of  his  eloquence 
shot  up  from  his  Southern  home  in  rivalry  of  Northern  lights,  and 
in  many  circles  of  Northern  States  his  fame  was  as  fondly  cherished 
as  among  the  brilliant  society  of  the  sunny  South. 

Had  his  life  been  spared  he  would  have  made  an  enviable  record 
here ;  but  the  hand  of  death  was  on  his  heart  and  the  silence  of  the 
grave  is  on  his  eloquent  lips. 

A  loving  wife  mourns  his  double  loss  to  herself  and  to  their  sor- 


. i />;>/;/•»•  or  MI:.  I;OI;/.\X<L\,  oi-  NEW  YORK.  33 

rowing  children.  But  his  country  to-day,  by  her  Representatives 
from  all  the  States,  takes  pride  in  recounting  his  virtues  and  per 
petuating  their  memory.  Northern  praise  and  Southern  song 
mingle  in  mournful  harmony  over  his  loss.  I  have  listened  with 
pride  to  the  voices  of  his  eulogists  here  to-day.  Pennsylvania, 
Massachusetts,  Montana,  Maine,  and  Louisiana  have  mingled  their 
eloquent  and  merited  praises  with  the  fit  and  feeling  tributes  from 
his  own  State  with  which  these  ceremonies  have  been  opened  and 
will  close. 

Comfort  for  the  mourning  widow  and  consolation  for  his  bereaved 
family  we  offer  here  to-day  from  sympathizing  hearts.  We  cannot 
dry  the  tears  from  their  eyes,  nor  would  we  if  we  could ;  but  the 
kindly  words  sincerely  offered  will  shine  through  them  and  picture 
on  the  sky  their  future — a  rainbow  of  hope  and  promise — for  many 
a  brightening  day. 

The  sorrow  that  broods  over  his  bereaved  family  day  after  day, 
that  has  enshrouded  their  hearts  since  his  death  and  will  con 
tinue  to  fling  its  shadow  over  their  brightest  hours,  broadens  and 
deepens  to-day  into  national  sympathy.  The  extremes  of  our  grand 
Republic,  Maine  and  Louisiana,  Massachusetts  and  Montana,  come 
with  flowers  culled  from  cultivated  gradens  and  mountain  wilds. 
South  Carolina  has  covered  his  funeral  bier  with  Southern  garlands 
redolent  of  richest  perfume.  I  beg  leave  to  fling  upon  that  bier  as 
it  passes  a  single  rose-bud,  bedewed  with  tears  of  sympathy  and 
breathing  fragrance  from  the  home  of  his  fathers.  I  sincerely 
mourn  with  his  warmest  friends  his  too  early  death ;  but  he  lived 
long  enough  to  secure  the  bays  with  which  South  Carolina  decks 
the  heads  of  her  children. 

Nor  shall  that  laurel  ever  fade  with  years 
Whose  leaves  are  watered  with  a  Nation's  tears. 


34          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  .MICHAEL  1'.  O'COXXOIi. 


Address  of  Mr.  EviNS,  of  South  Carolina. 
Mr.  SPEAKER:    To  those  of  us  who  believe  that — 

'T  is  not  the  whole  of  life  to  live, 
Nor  all  of  death  to  die, 

such  an  occasion  as  this  brings  with  it  sober  thought  and  serious 
reflection.  The  sentiment  which  demands  this  solemn  pause  amid 
the  cares  and  duties  which  press  upon  us  is  a  holy  one,  and  spring 
ing  as  it  does  from  our  higher  and  better  nature,  we  do  well  to  give 
it  heed.  Under  its  soft  and  gentle  influence  our  thoughts  are  lifted 
out  of  their  selfish  grooves  into  a  purer  atmosphere,  where  the 
voice  of  passion  and  party  is  never  heard,  and  where  the  affections 
are  supreme.  This  sacred  hour,  with  its  elevating  and  ennobling 
influences,  is  not  without  its  benefits  to  the  living,  while  it  is  con 
secrated  to  the  dead.  In  this  dark  world  of  ours  there  is  no  richer 
gem  than  sorrow's  diadem — a  tear. 

Among  the  thoughts  which  crowd  upon  me  at  this  moment,  Mr. 
Speaker,  the  saddest  is  that  which  tells  of  the  large  number  of  seats 
made  vacant  by  the  "insatiate  archer"  since  my  entrance  into  this 
Hall  as  a  member  of  the  Forty-fifth  Congress.  How  frequently, 
sir,  during  these  brief  years  has  the  sound  of  the  gavel  upon  your 
desk  been  muffled,  and  the  noisy  strife  upon  this  floor  been  hushed 
by  the  funeral  bell  which  told  of  the  breaches  made  in  our  ranks. 
Another  has  been  added  to  this  long  list,  and  to-day  our  thoughts 
are  turned  to  a  green  grave  on  our  Southern  coast,  upon  which  the 
flowers  of  spring  and  summer  have  bloomed  and  died ;  a  grave 
which  holds  all  that  is  mortal  of  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR,  a  mem 
ber  of  the  last  and  a  member-elect  to  the  present  Congress.  What 
name  is  there  upon  that  death-roll  more  worthy  to  be  hallowed  by 
those  gifted  with  the  eloquence  of  speech  ?  Whose  noble  and  gen 
erous  qualities  of  heart  better  deserve  the  tribute  of  a  tear  ?  One 


ADDIiKSS  OF  MIL  Kl'INS,  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  35 

who  sat  upon  the  other  side  of  this  Chamber  when  I  entered  it  fell 
by  the  hand  of  an  assassin  after  he  had  reached  the  highest  goal  of 
earthly  ambition  ;  and  a  sorrowing  nation  stood  uncovered  around 
his  bier  while  the  civilized  world  did  him  homage.  Others  still, 
upon  that  list,  filled  a  larger  space  in  the  history  of  their  country ; 
but  if  those  are  esteemed  most  worthy  of  honor  who  have  dis 
charged  with  the  greatest  fidelity  the  high  trusts  committed  to 
them  as  representatives  of  the  people  and  the  duties  incumbent  upon 
them  as  private  citizens,  then  the  name  of  my  lamented  friend  and 
former  colleague  will  suffer  no  eclipse  in  the  galaxy  where  death 
has  placed  it. 

His  presence  and  bearing  gave  instant  assurance  of  the  posses 
sion,  on  his  part,  of  those  qualities  of  mind  and  disposition  which 
always  attract.  His  bright  and  open  face,  unmarred  by  those  malign 
passions  which  so  often  disfigure  with  their  lines  and  furrows  nature's 
fair  handiwork,  gave  him  an  unfailing  passport  to  the  good  opinion 
and  friendly  courtesies  of  the  stranger;  while  no  one  ever  met  the 
cordial  grasp  of  his  hand  without  feeling  that  the  heart  which  pul 
sated  through  it  was  filled  with  every  kindly  emotion.  His  ardent 
nature  made  him  an  enthusiast  in  whatever  he  undertook.  He 
never  did  anything  in  a  half-hearted  way.  With  all  the  zeal  and 
devotion  of  a  true  knight-errant  he  pursued  the  right  as  he  under 
stood  it ;  yet  with  a  generous  courtesy,  in  which  there  was  not  a 
tinge  of  arrogance,  he  was  ever  ready  to  receive  the  counsel  and 
advice  of  those  who  differed  with  him  on  questions  of  importance 
touching  private  interests  or  the  public  weal. 

Without  fortune  or  family  influence,  he  achieved  success  by  faith 
ful  work  and  honest  endeavor.  In  a  short  time  after  entering  upon 
the  practice  of  his  profession,  his  fine  power  of  speech  and  his 
ability  to  stir  the  hearts  of  men  began  to  be  appreciated  by  the 
public,  and  very  soon  he  became  a  distinguished  advocate  at  the 
Charleston  bar,  noted  for  its  learning  and  eloquence,  and  at  the 


36  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  1\  O'CONNOR. 

head  of  which  then  stood  the  erudite  scholar  and  peerless  lawyer, 
James  L.  Petigru. 

Mr.  O'COXNOR'S  long  service  in  the  legislature  of  his  State, 
extending  through  a  series  of  years,  from  1858  to  1866,  greatly 
increased  his  reputation.  During  this  memorable  period  in  the 
history  of  South  Carolina  the  gravest  questions  which  ever  agitated 
the  minds  and  hearts  of  her  citizens  were  discussed  and  acted  upon. 
In  these  exciting  debates  he  bore  a  conspicuous  part,  finding  in 
them  the  bast  themes  for  his  impassioned  oratory.  Always  con 
servative,  perhaps  the  ablest  speeches  he  ever  delivered  were  made 
during  this  period.  Two  among  the  most  remarkable  deserve  special 
mention  ;  one  was  against  the  adoption  of  certain  resolutions  advo 
cating  the  policy  of  reopening  the  African  slave  trade,  and  the  other 
in  favor  of  the  maintenance  of  the  Union  of  States,  called  forth 
by  a  report  from  the  committee  on  federal  relations.  But  the  speech 
which  displayed  most  strikingly  his  great  gifts  as  an  orator  was 
that  made  by  him  as  a  member  of  the  National  Democratic  Conven 
tion,  whicli  met  in  Baltimore  in  1872.  The  charm  and  witchery 
of  his  eloquence  on  this  occasion  so  completely  captivated  the  vast 
throng  who  heard  him  that,  with  one  impulse,  they  rose  to  their 
feet  and  filled  the  immense  hall  in  which  they  were  gathered  with 
round  after  round  of  deafening  applause.  The  press  of  the  day 
spoke  of  it  as  an  effort  "worthy  of  a  Henry  or  a  Preston." 

When,  in  1876,  the  honest  people  of  his  native  State  determined 
to  make  a  supreme  and  united  effort  to  free  themselves  from  the 
thralldom  of  the  infamous  men  who  for  eight  long  years  had  used 
every  department  of  the  government  simply  as  an  instrument  for 
oppression  or  a  means  of  advancing  and  legalizing  schemes  of  rob 
bery  and  spoliation,  they  found  no  tongue  more  eloquent  to  depict 
their  wrongs,  no  voice  more  potent  to  kindle  into  a  blaze  of  enthu 
siasm  the  energies  which  must  crown  their  cause  with  success,  than 
the  tongue  and  voice  of  the  gifted  O'CoxxoR.  He  was,  during 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  EVINS,  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  37 

this  memorable  struggle,  the  candidate  of  the  Democracy  of  the  sec 
ond  district  for  Congress;  and  whatever  regrets  others  may  have 
expressed  for  his  defeat,  he  felt  fully  compensated  for  all  the  toil  he 
had  eudured  and  all  the  sacrifices  he  had  made  in  seeing  his  beloved 
State  redeemed  and  once  more  restored  to  the  control  of  those  who 
had  made  her  history  glorious  and  her  name  immortal.  Twice  after 
this  defeat  he  was  returned  as  a  member  of  this  House,  but  lived 
only  long  enough  to  complete  his  first  term.  Short  and  unevent 
ful  as  his  career  among  us  was,  it  was  long  enough  to  excite  the 
brightest  hopes  for  future  renown,  and  long  enough  to  fill  our  hearts 
to-day  with  sweet  and  sacred  memories  of  his  gentle  nature,  which 
time  can  never  efface.  Few,  even  among  those  most  intimate  with 
him  while  he  occupied  a  seat  on  this  floor,  knew  how  intensely  ho 
suffered  or  how  bravely  he  was  fighting  against  the  fatal  disease 
which  had  fastened  itself  upon  his  vitals.  The  noble  self-sacrifice 
lie  exhibited  under  all  the  adverse  circumstances  which  surrounded 
him  here,  and  the  singleness  of  purpose  with  which  he  filled  the 
hours  so  much  needed  for  rest  and  recuperation  with  work  for  his 
constituents  and  anxious  thought  for  the  public  welfare,  is  worthy 
of  all  praise. 

Mr.  Speaker,  after  the  eloquent  and  touching  eulogies  already 
pronounced  by  the  distinguished  speakers  who  have  preceded  me, 
it  is  unnecessary  for  me  to  say  more. 

No  constituency  ever  had  a  more  faithful  and  devoted  Represent 
ative  ;  South  Carolina  no  truer  son ;  the  cause  of  liberty,  whether 
it  centered  around  the  shamrock,  so  dear  to  his  heart,  or  gathered 
about  the  Stars  and  Stripes,  no  firmer  friend  ;  tyranny  and  wrong 
no  more  relentless  foe. 

On  the  4th  of  March  last  he  went  out  from  among  us  with  the 
shadow  of  death  upon  his  brow ;  a  month  later  he  was  released 
from  suffering  and  found  a  resting-place  beneath  the  Palmetto  he 
loved  so  well,  leaving  behind  him  a  memory  as  fragrant  as  the 


38          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

flowers  which  bloom  above  him,  and  as  fresh  and  green  to-day  as 
the  grass  upon  his  grave. 

Mr.  Speaker,  I  move  the  adoption  of  the  resolutions  presented 
-    by  my  colleague. 

The  resolutions  were   unanimously  adopted ;    and    accordingly 
the  House  adjourned. 


PROCEEDINGS  IN  THE  SENATE. 

FEBRUARY  9,  1882. 

A  message  from  the  House  of  Representatives,  by  Mr.  JOHN 
BAILEY,  its  Chief  Clerk,  communicated  to  the  Senate  the  intelli 
gence  of  the  death  of  Hon.  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR,  late  a  mem 
ber  of  the  House  from  the  State  of  South  Carolina,  and  trans 
mitted  the  resolutions  of  the  House  thereon. 

The  resolutions  were  read,  as  follows: 

Rewired,  That  this  House  lias  heard  with  profound  sorrow  of  the  death  of 
Hon.  MICHAEL  P.  O'CoxxoR,  late  a  member  of  this  House  from  the  State  of 
South  Carolina. 

Resolved,  That  as  a  mark  of  respect  to  his  memory  the  officers  and  members 
of  this  House  will  wear  the  usual  badge  of  mourning  for  thirty  days. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  transmitted  by  the  Clerk  of 
this  House  to  the  family  of  the  deceased. 

Resolved,  That  the  Clerk  be  directed  to  communicate  a  copy  of  these  pro 
ceedings  to  the  Senate  ;  and  that,  as  a  further  mark  of  respect  to  the  memory 
of  the  deceased,  this  House  do  now  adjourn. 

Mr.  BUTLER.  Mr.  President,  I  offer  the  following  resolutions: 

Resolved,  That  the  Senate  has  received  with  profound  sorrow  the  announce 
ment  of  the  death  of  Hon.  MICHAKL,  P.  O'CoxxoR,  late  a  member  of  the  House 
of  Representatives  from  the  State  of  South  Carolina. 

Resolved,  That  the  business  of  the  Senate  be  now  suspended  that  opportu 
nity  may  be  given  for  fitting  tributes  to  the  memory  of  the  deceased  and  to 
his  eminent  public  and  private  virtues,  and  that  as  a  further  mark  of  respect 
the  Senate  at  the  conclusion  of  such  remarks  shall  adjourn. 

Address  of  Mr.  BUTLER,  of  South  Carolina. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT  :  The  frequent  recurrence  of  these  sad  occasions 
in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  when  we  are  called  upon  by 

fitting  ceremonies  to  pay  a  final  tribute  to  the   memories  of  our 

39 


40          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

brethren  who  have  died  from  among  us,  is  calculated  to  remind  us 
with  striking  significance  of  the  slight  tenure  we  have  upon  life. 
But  a  few  days  have  elapsed  since  we  heard  in  this  Chamber  the 
touching  and  affectionate  tributes  to  two  of  the  most  distinguished 
and  beloved  of  our  number — one  the  late  lamented  Senator  from 
Rhode  Island  (General  Burnside),  the  embodiment  of  vigorous 
health,  and  yet  he  answered  the  call  of  the  grim  messenger  as 
serenely  as  did  the  great  Wisconsin  Senator  (Carpenter),  who 
languished  and  suffered  and  sunk  under  the  wasting  hand  of 
disease ;  and  again  to-day,  sir,  we  are  confronted  with  the  dismal 
reality  that  another  of  our  brethren  of  the  other  House  is  dead. 

His  reputation  and  fame  were  not  so  wide-spread  and  national 
as  the  two  renowned  Senators,  but  the  hearts  of  neither  of  them, 
generous  as  they  were,  throbbed  with  more  fervid  patroitism  or 
warmed  with  more  generous  sympathies  than  did  that  of  my  late 
friend,  M.  P.  O'CONNOR.  He  loved  his  country  and  his  friends 
with  unstinted  devotion,  and  in  turn  received  the  homage  of  their 
undivided  confidence  and  respect. 

The  overflowing  generosity  and  kindness  of  his  enthusiastic  Irish 
nature  secured  for  him  the  warmest  attachment  of  his  friends,  and 
his  ardent  devotion  to  the  best  interests  of  his  country  and  the  require 
ments  of  duty  commanded  the  admiration  of  all  men. 

Mr.  O'CONNOR  was  born  in  the  old  town  of  Beaufort,  South 
Carolina,  on  the  29th  of  September,  1831,  and  died  in  Charleston 
on  the  26th  day  of  April,  1881,  in  the  fiftieth  year  of  his  age. 

He  was  educated  and  graduated  at  Saint  John's  College,  Fordham, 
New  York,  and  was  by  profession  a  lawyer,  with  his  office  in  the 
city  of  Charleston.  He  represented  that  city  for  four  terms  in  the 
legislature  of  South  Carolina,  from  1858  to  1865,  and  was  elected 
to  the  Forty-fifth  and  Forty-sixth  Congresses  from  the  second 
Congressional  district,  and  died  while  a  member  of  the  Forty- 
sixth  Congress. 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  BUTLER,  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  41 

In  1872  Mr.  O'CONNOR  was  a  delegate  to  the  National  Demo 
cratic  Convention  held  in  the  city  of  Baltimore,  and  again  repre 
sented  his  party  in  the  national  convention  at  Saint  Louis  in  1876. 

He  was  highly  gifted  as  an  orator  and  public  speaker.  In  the 
course  of  the  proceedings  of  the  Baltimore  convention  he  made  one 
of  those  impassioned  bursts  of  eloquence  that  electrify  an  audience 
and  take  it  captive.  He  lighted  a  spark  that  swept  through  the  con 
vention  with  irresistible  enthusiasm,  and  acquired  in  this  national 
arena  a  reputation  as  a  public  speaker  that  had  hitherto  been  local, 
but  none  the  less  duly  appreciated  by  those  who  were  accustomed 
to  hear  him.  His  style  of  oratory  was  peculiarly  attractive  and 
captivating.  With  a  clear,  ringing  voice,  under  perfect  control,  his 
style  was  as  chaste  and'classical  as  the  most  finished  elocutionist,  and 
his  flow  of  language  as  easy  and  unhesitating  as  an  unobstructed 
stream.  Equipped  with  these  high  qualities,  coupled  with  a  ripe 
scholarship  and  well-stored  mind,  he  was  a  ready  and  effective 
speaker  and  only  awaited  a  fitting  opportunity  in  the  other  branch 
of  the  National  Legislature  to  have  illustrated  his  great  powers  as  a 
parliamentary  debater. 

In  1876  Mr.  O'CONNOR  was  made  president  of  that  ancient  order 
of  glorious  memories  and  associations,  the  Hibernian  Society  of 
Irishmen,  of  Charleston.  Hear  what  one  of  that  society  says  of 
him,  Hon.  A.  G.  Magrath,  who  was  himself  a  paragon  of  perfect 
speech  with  a  brilliant  intellect.  In  presenting  the  tribute  of  respect 
to  the  late  president,  at  a  meeting  of  the  Hibernian  Society,  May  3, 
1881,  Judge  Magrath  said: 

The  rlowers  I  lay  on  his  grave  are  not  bright  and  beautiful  as  he  would 

have  gathered,  but  who  could  equal  his  taste  or  his  skill? 

»#*#»#* 

His  heart  was  as  open  and  cheering  as  the  light  of  day.  His  sympathy  with 
his  race  was  attuned  to  a  perfect  harmony.  Suffering,  whatever  form  it  took, 
was  resistless  in  its  appeal;  and  oppression,  however  imposing  in  its  force, 
was  confronted  by  him,  who  never  quailed  before  it.  And  when  it  grew  in 
ils  proportions  and  threatened  communities,  his  spirit  rose  equal  to  the  magni- 


42          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.   O'COXNOIt. 

tude  of  the  occasion  ;  and  a  generous  heart  inspired  the  burning  words  that 
caused  his  passionate  eloquence  to  stir  the  most  sluggish  to  sympathy  with 
him. 

No  one  born  in  the  land  of  his  forefathers  more  rejoiced  in  all  that  was 
glorious  in  its  past ;  01  in  more  touching  pathos  mourned  what  is  sad  and 
depressing  in  its  present  fortunes.  These  walls  have  echoed  his  denuncia 
tions  of  its  wrongs,  and  the  demand  for  its  rights.  But  of  these  there  is  no 
record.  They  were  like  the  flash  of  the  lightning,  brilliant,  dazzling,  startling; 
not  to  be  forgotten,  yet  not  to  be  recalled. 

But  for  his  own  State,  his  own  city,  his  own  home,  his  own  friends,  every 
generous  and  indignant  passion  in  him  was  stirred  to  its  deepest  depths  in  the 
suffering  he  saw  and  shared.  When  in  giving  expression  to  his  feeling, 
when  the  heart  and  the  brain,  with  intensity  that  could  not  be  surpassed  in 
their  union,  rose  into  the  grand  diapason  of  oratory,  he  stood  to  champion  her 
cause,  no  more  devoted  son  could  be  found  within  her  limits.  He  spoke  as 
men  do  whose  words  ring  true  to  the  honest  passion  which  prompts  their 
utterance  and  they  who  speak  forget  themselves  in  kinship  with  those  whose 
wrongs  only  are  remembered. 

He  occupied  a  commanding  position  in  that  galaxy  of  distinguished 
lawyers  at  the  Charleston  bar — one  of  the  ablest,  I  think,  in  the 
whole  country — and  held  his  own  successfully  in  intellectual  con 
tests  with  the  brightest  luminaries  of  his  professional  brethren. 
His  entry  into  active  political  life  was  attended  by  one  of  the  most 
vexatious  and  bitter  contests  ever  known  in  the  political  history  of 
this  country,  and  yet  his  most  unsympathetic  political  antagonist 
will  concede  that  throughout  the  long  and  trying  ordeal  he  bore 
himself  with  becoming  moderation  and  decorum,  and  with  the  self- 
respect  and  bearing  of  a  dignified  gentleman.  Upon  taking  his  seat 
in  the  Forty-sixth  Congress  he  was  assigned  to  some  of  the  impor 
tant  committees,  and  devoted  himself  with  unassuming  but  faithful 
earnestness  to  his  duties.  Watching  the  interests  of  his  immediate 
constituency  and  section  with  singular  fidelity,  taking  broad,  liberal 
views  of  all  matters  presented  to  Congress  for  consideration,  he 
never  permitted  his  duty  to  his  State  to  narrow  his  views  on  national 
questions.  Such,  Mr.  President,  is  a  brief  record  of  his  outward 
public  career.  It  is  as  honorable  as  any  man's. 

He  was  for  many  years  in  the  open  light  of  the  public  gaze,  in 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.  BUTLER,  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  43 

times  of  great  temptation  and  excitement,  but  no  whisper  ever  tainted 
his  character ;  no  breath  of  suspicion  ever  impaired  the  strength  of 
his  public  life,  and  no  word  of  reproach  was  ever  uttered  against 
his  private  worth.  He  literally  "died  in  harness,"  discharging  his 
high  duty  with  a  fidelity  that  was  as  sacred  to  him  as  his  life,  and 
an  ability  that  reflects  luster  upon  his  name.  This,  sir,  is  a  feeble, 
not  overdrawn,  encomium  that  I  bestow  upon  a  dead  friend  with 
sincere  regard  for  his  memory. 

But  there  was  an  inner  circle  in  Mr.  O'CONNOR'S  life — the  family, 
the  home,  friends — where  he  was  as  simple  and  unselfish  in  his 
affections  as  a  guileless  child.  It  is  almost  forbidden  to  enter  that 
sacred  circle  upon  a  public  occasion,  but  my  contribution  to  these 
memorial  ceremonies,  however  otherwise  imperfect,  would  be  incom 
plete  without  allusion  to  that  phase  of  his  life  where  the  undis 
guised  tenderness  of  a  manly  heart  and  unrestrained  indulgence  in 
his  pure  affections  dispensed  so  much  happiness  and  pleasure  to 
those  who  clung  to  him  with  such  ardent  devotion.  That  circle  is 
broken  forever. 

What  power  can  measure  the  intensity  of  the  anguish  that  wrung 
the  hearts  of  those  who  had  been  made  glad  and  happy  by  his 
generous  aifections?  Certainly  no  human  power.  Let  us,  then, 
draw  tenderly  and  reverently  the  veil  of  mourning  over  the  sacred 
mystery,  and  lay  upon  his  green  grave  the  homage  of  our  unaffected 
sorrow. 

He  lies  beneath  the  soil  of  the  State  he  loved  so  well  and  served 
so  faithfully.  It  was  there  he  wished  to  be  buried  and  rest  for 
ever,  where  the  ceaseless  moaning  of  the  stately  pine  and  the  rust 
ling  breezes  through  the  ever-green  magnolia,  mingling  with  the 
restless  murmur  of  the  neighboring  waves  and  sighing  winds  of  his 
beloved  sunny  land,  might  sing  his  requiem  forever  in  the  perfect 
harmonies  of  nature's  faultless  symphonies. 


44  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'COX.\<>L'. 


Address  of  Mr.  BAYARD,  of  Delaware. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT  :  My  personal  acquaintance  with  the  worthy 
gentleman  whose  death  we  all  deplore  was  commenced  amid  the 
somewhat  stormy  scenes  of  a  national  convention,  held  in  the  city 
of  Baltimore,  in  June,  1872,  which  he  attended  as  a  delegate  from 
the  State  of  South  Carolina ;  and  I  can  well  recall  the  spirited  and 
effective  eloquence  with  which  he  espoused  a  course  of  action  in 
which  I  did  not  concur. 

He  subsequently  became  a  member  of  the  House  of  Representa 
tives,  and  friendly  personal  relations  were  soon  established  between 
us,  in  which  I  discerned  his  active,  ardent  interest  in  public  affairs, 
and  his  usefulness  as  an  able  and  honorable  representative  of  his 
State  and  country. 

He  gained  early,  and  never  lost,  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  his 
associates  without  regard  to  their  party  affiliations,  and  his  reputa 
tion  as  a  capable  and  faithful  legislator  will  long  survive. 

I  remember  well  his  friendly  and  especial  interest  in  the  affairs  of 
that  peculiarly  helpless  class  of  our  people,  who  suffered  so  severely 
by  the  failure  of  the  Freedman's  Savings  Bank  and  the  subsequent 
mismanagement  of  its  assets. 

He  espoused  the  cause  of  that  large  body  of  poor  investors  with 
characteristic  generosity  and  devotion,  and,  had  his  wise  counsels 
prevailed,  I  believe  great  deterioration  in  the  assets  of  that  institu 
tion  and  heavy  losses  would  have  been  prevented. 

Mr.  O'CONNOR,  although  a  natural-born  citizen  of  South  Caro 
lina,  possessed,  in  a  marked  degree,  the  characteristics  of  the  race 
from  which  he  sprung.  His  name  and  parentage  were  Irish ;  and 
he  was  one  of  the  almost  countless  illustrations  of  worth  and  char 
acter,  eloquence  and  wit,  courage  and  capacity,  which  that  island  of 


OF  MB.  JONES,  OF  FLORIDA.  45 

sorrows  has  contributed  to  build  up  and  strengthen  the  Govern 
ment  of  the  United  States  and  the  advancement  of  its  people. 

Mr.  President,  if  the  names  of  the  men  of  Irish  birth  and  Irish 
blood  who  have  dignified  and  decorated  the  annals  of  American 
history  were  to  be  erased  from  the  record,  how  much  of  the  glory  of 
our  country  would  l>e  subtracted!  In  the  list  of  American  states 
men  and  patriots,  theologians  and  poets,  soldiers  and  sailors,  jurists 
and  orators,  what  names  shine  with  purer  luster  or  are  mentioned 
with  more  respect  than  those  of  the  men,  past  and  present,  we  owe 
to  Ireland  ? 

On  that  imperishable  roll  of  honor,  the  Declaration  of  Independ 
ence,  we  find  their  names,  and  in  the  prolonged  struggle  that  fol 
lowed  there  was  no  battle-field  from  the  Saint  Lawrence  to  the 
Savannah  but  was  enriched  with  Irish  blood  shed  in  the  cause  of 
civil  and  religious  liberty.  To-day  we  see  them  in  our  midst, 
honored  and  beloved  by  their  associates,  and  valued  not  only  by 
their  constituents  alone,  but  by  the  entire  country.  Of  this  patri 
otic  class  was  Mr.  O'CONNOR,  and  whilst  we  cannot  fail  to  mourn 
the  loss  occasioned  by  his  death,  we  may  well  cherish  the  legacy  of 
honest  fame  and  faithful  public  service  he  has  left  us. 


Address  of  Mr.  JONES,  of  Florida. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT  :  Only  a  few  weeks  ago  the  Senate  was  called 
upon  to  express  its  respect  and  sympathy  over  the  loss  of  two  of  ita 
distinguished  members,  and  it  sent  its  resolutions  of  mourning  to 
receive  the  concurrence  of  the  other  house.  To-day  that  house, 
as  if  to  remind  us  of  the  undis  riminating  harshness  of  death,  and 
that  no  official  station  within  or  without  this  Capitol  can  shield  or 
protect  its  victims,  informs  us  officially  of  the  loss  of  one  of  its  mem 
bers.  The  worthy  man  of  whom  I  am  to  speak  to-day  was  not  known 


46     LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICUAEL  I'. 

to  many  Senators  as  well  as  he  was  to  me.  I  met  him  in  the  first 
political  body  I  ever  entered — the  Baltimore  convention  of  1872 ; 
and  when  he  entered  the  other  house  my  acquaintance  ripened  into 
intimacy.  In  my  intercourse  with  him  I  had  a  fair  opportunity  of 
studying  and  appreciating  his  character,  which  was  eminently  dis 
tinguished  for  qualities  that  always  have  excited  and  always  will 
excite  both  interest  and  admiration. 

MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR  was  a  generous,  tender-hearted,  brave 
man.  His  mind  was  active,  bright,  and  full  of  impartiality.  And 
his  great  heart — how  shall  I  speak  of  it? — was  filled  to  overflowing 
with  the  kindliest  and  tenderest  feelings  and  sympathies,  which 
needed  only  the  faintest  exhibition  of  sorrow  or  misfortune  to  bring 
them  into  full  play.  He  wa-  the  undoubted  possessor  of  some  of 
the  best  qualities  of  that  race  to  which  his  name  exclusively  belongs. 
While  he  was  a  native  of  South  Carolina,  and  was  devoted  to  her 
as  strongly  as  man  ever  was  to  the  soil  that  gave  him  birth,  in  all 
the  controlling  characteristics  of  nature  he  was  an  Irishman — more 
of  an  Irishman  than  many  who  first  saw  the  light  of  heaven  on  Irish 
soil ;  and  there  was  not  the  least  dross  in  his  character  to  obscure  or 
disfigure  those  genuine  traits  of  the  race  from  which  he  sprung. 

While  no  one  claimed  for  him  those  pre-eminent  gifts  of  mind 
which  immortalized  Sheridan,  Grattan,  and  Curran,  still  he  had 
qualities  in  common  with  all  of  those  great  men,  and  without  which 
their  purely  intellectual  gifts  never  would  have  made  them  famous 
as  orators  and  thinkers.  The  inflamed  fancy,  the  enthusiastic  spirit, 
the  emotional  nature  were  all  his,  and  with  them  he  combined  a 
lofty,  indeed  I  might  say  an  ever  watchful  and  sensitive,  courage, 
which  was  ever  on  tip-toe  surveying  everything  that  approached 
the  sacred  domain  of  his  manhood  and  honor.  The  slightest  impu 
tation  or  insinuation  of  indignity  would  arouse  all  the  stormy  fury 
of  his  nature,  while  the  simplest  appeal  to  his  charity  and  kindness 
would  melt  him  into  the  tenderest  sympathy  and  almost  bring  forth 


ADDKESS  (IF  J/A'.  JONES,  OF  FLORIDA.  47 

his  tears.  Whatever  cause  or  object  enlisted  his  exertions  received 
from  him  the  most  persevering  support,  and  he  gave  in  such  cases 
to  the  interests  and  concerns  of  the  stranger  more  labor  and  effort 
than  he  would  ever  give  to  his  own. 

His  was  one  of  those  noble  souls  which,  instead  of  leaving  the 
great  highway  of  suffering  and  sorrow  to  avoid  the  appeals  of  the 
injured  and  distressed,  are  forever  in  search  of  objects  upon  which 
to  exercise  their  benevolence  and  kindness.  The  sufferings  and 
wrongs  of  the  country  of  his  fathers  affected  him  as  deeply  as  they 
did  any  one  who  had  personally  felt  their  sting.  He  was  familiar 
with  her  sad  history  of  tears  and  blood ;  never  weak  enough  to 
deny  her  claim  to  the  sympathy  of  the  world,  or  because  of  her 
poverty  and  oppression  refused  her  the  honor  and  recognition  that 
was  due  to  her  genius  and  her  fame.  Whenever  a  kind  or  sympa 
thetic  word  was  called  for  in  the  interest  of  Ireland,  the  voice  of  M. 
P.  O'CoxxoR  was  always  heard.  While  he  might  have  skulked 
behind  his  nativity  and  disclaimed  his  Irish  blood,  he  was  too  great 
and  good  and  true  to  be  either  insincere  or  indifferent  in  anything, 
and  his  justice  and  intelligence  were  too  strong  and  decided  for 
him  ever  to  think  of  any  petty  advantage  which  might  flow  from 
joining  those  who  gave  the  cold  shoulder  to  the  land  of  his  fathers. 
The  admonition  of  Ireland's  great  poet  had  no  effect  upon  him : 

Unprized  are  her  sons  till  they  learn  to  betray, 
Undistinguished  they  live  it'  they  shame  not  their  sires, 

And  the  torch  that  would  light  them  to  dignity's  way 
Must  be  caught  from  the  pile  when  their  country  expires. 

In  his  character  of  a  national  legislator  he  combined  the  most 
untiring  devotion  to  the  interests  of  his  immediate  constituents 
with  a  sincere  and  active  interest  for  the  welfare  and  happiness  of 
the  whole  Union.  Accepting  with  manly  resignation  the  inevi 
table  results  of  the  civil  war,  he  brought  to  the  councils  of  his 
country  a  mind  and  heart  free  from  all  unkindness  and  prejudice 


48          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MH'HAEL  /'. 

as  well  as  an  honest  determination  to  employ  his  best  talents  in 
promoting  concord  and  good-will  among  all  classes  of  the  people. 
Often  have  I  been  benefited  by  the  breadth  and  patriotism  of  his 
views  respecting  the  duties  of  those  who  represented  Southern  con 
stituencies  in  Congress.  He  spoke  with  the  wisdom  of  a  philoso 
pher  and  in  the  words  of  a  true  patriot. 

He  was  not  unmindful  of  the  natural  effects  of  the  terrible  civil 
conflict  through  which  we  had  passed  in  obstructing  for  a  time  the 
extension  of  justice  and  kindness  to  the  section  he  so  dearly  loved. 
He  made  due  allowance  for  the  passions  and  weaknesses  of  human 
nature,  and  what  others  attributed  to  inborn  and  irremediable  hos 
tility  he  knew  to  be  only  the  excrescence  of  protracted  sectional 
strife,  which,  if  not  inflamed  for  unworthy  purposes  by  weak  or 
designing  men,  would  ultimately  yield  to  the  healthy  reaction  of 
the  body-politic,  and  leave  the  country  in  the  enjoyment  of  real 
peace,  union,  and  concord. 

I  have  seen  him  surrounded  by  his  devoted  family,  and  any  one 
in  the  least  conversant  with  the  operations  of  his  private  life  could 
readily  see  that  to  his  high  qualities  as  a  citizen  and  public  servant 
he  added  the  virtues  of  a  devoted  husband  and  an  affectionate 
father.  I  have  sometimes  heard  public  men  applauded  for  their 
Christian  faith.  With  Mr.  O'CoNNOE  religion  was  not  an  empty 
name.  He  did  not  aim  to  be  a  pillar  of  the  church,  and  never 
attempted  to  put  his  piety  into  the  faces  of  those  with  whom  he 
mingled.  Like  all  true  men  he  eliminated  it  from  all  else  that 
appertained  to  the  affairs  of  this  life,  and  regarded  it  as  a  sacred 
thing  in  which  only  himself  and  his  God  were  concerned.  Devoid 
of  all  sectarian  narrowness  and  bigotry,  his  preference  for  the 
creed  in  which  he  lived  and  died  never  for  a  moment  interrupted 
the  course  of  his  friendship  and  love  for  those  who  differed  from 
him.  Although  cut  down  in  the  prime  of  his  manhood,  he  lived 
long  enough  to  establish  a  character  for  honor,  usefulness,  and 


ADDRESS  OF  MR.   HAMPTON,  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.          49 

devotion  to  duty  of  which  both  his  family  and  people  may  be 
proud. 

Oh,  my  beloved  and  devoted  friend, 

While  kindred  woes  still  breathe  around  thine  urn. 

Long  with  the  tear  of  absence  must  I  blend 
The  sigh  that  speaks,  Thou  never  shalt  return, 

'Twos  faith  that,  bending  o'er  the  bed  of  death, 

Shed  o'er  thy  pallid  cheek  a  transient  ray  ; 
With  softer  effort  soothed  thy  laboring  breath, 

Gave  grace  to  anguish,  beauty  to  decay. 

Thy  wife  and  children  claimed  thy  latest  care; 

Theirs  was  the  last  that  to  thy  bosom  clung ; 
For  them  to  Heaven  thou  send'st  the  expiring  prayer, 

The  last  that  faltered  on  thy  trembling  tongue. 


Address  of  Mr.  HAMPTON,  of  South  Carolina. 

Mr.  PRESIDENT  :  Twice  within  the  past  few  days  have  we  been 
called  upon  to  do  honor  to  the  memory  of  colleagues  who  have  been 
summoned  to  answer  that  great  final  roll-call  on  high,  to  which  all 
mankind  must  respond.  Laying  aside  the  ordinary  routine  of 
business;  pausing  for  a  time  amid  the  rush  of  active  life  ani  the 
clash  of  conflicting  opinions;  forgetting  even  all  political  differ 
ences,  we  met,  on  those  solemn  occasions,  on  the  broad  ground  of  a 
common  humanity,  consecrated  to  us  by  a  common  affliction.  Rhode 
Island  and  Wisconsin,  mourning  the  death  of  two  illustrious  citi 
zens  who  had  represented  them  in  this  Chamber,  called  then  upon 
the  great  sisterhood  of  States  for  that  sympathy  which  sorrow  such 
as  theirs  demands,  and  which  should  always  be  freely  given.  We 
all  know  how  generously,  how  tenderly  this  was  extended.  To-day 
South  Carolina,  deploring  the  loss  of  a  gifted  and  devoted  son, 
turns  in  her  bereavement  to  her  sister  States  for  the  same  sympathy. 

The  resolutions  which  have  been  presented  by  my  colleague  tell 

of  the  death  of  Hon.  M.  P.  O'CONNOR,  late  a  Representative  from 
40 


50          LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  MICHAEL  P.  O'CONNOR. 

my  State  in  the  other  branch  of  Congress,  and  the  touching  trib 
utes  which  have  been  paid  to  his  memory  leave  me  nothing  to  say 
that  could  add  to  the  high  and  deserved  estimation  in  which  he  was 
held.  Feeling  this,  I  should  remain  silent  were  it  not  that  as  a 
representative  on  this  floor  of  the  State  which  honored  him,  and 
which  he  loved  so  ardently,  it  becomes  me  to  bear  testimony  to  his 
signal  public  services  and  to  his  eminent  private  virtues.  As  a 
Senator  from  South  Carolina  it  is  my  duty  to  do  this,  but  a  much 
higher  duty,  one  very  near  my  heart,  demands  this  at  my  hands : 
he  was  a  valued  and  trusted  friend.  The  warm  friendship  I  enter 
tained  for  him  sprung  up  in  long  by -gone  years ;  it  grew  stronger 
as  time  rolled  on,  and  it  was  terminated  only  by  his  death.  I  feel 
his  loss,  therefore,  not  only  as  a  public  calamity,  but  as  a  severe 
personal  bereavement.  Few  men  in  our  State  had  a  wider  circle  of 
earnest,  devoted  friends  than  himself,  and  I  know  of  no  tribute  to 
him  which  could  be  more  honorable,  more  touching,  or  more  tender 
than  the  general  sense  of  personal  loss  felt  at  his  death  by  all  of 
them.  Warm-hearted,  generous,  kind,  and  lovable,  he  drew  his 
friends  close  to  him,  and  they  loved  him  for  his  virtues  while  they 
admired  him  for  his  talents. 

He  was  no  ordinary  man  either  in  character  or  intellect,  for  while 
the  one  secured  for  him  the  esteem  of  those  who  knew  him,  the 
other  won  for  him  a  wide  and  well-earned  reputation.  The  warm 
Irish  blood  that  flowed  in  his  veins  gave  to  his  nature  its  impul 
sive  generosity  and  lent  to  his  persuasive  tongue  no  small  portion  of 
that  marvelous  eloquence  which  seems  to  be  the  birthright  of  the 
countrymen  of  Burke,  of  Sheridan,  of  Curran,  of  Grattan,  and  of 
O'Connell.  But,  with  all  these  rare  gifts  of  nature,  of  intellect,  and 
of  education,  he  was  not  fitted  for  the  rough  conflict  of  political 
strife,  and  I  have  no  doubt  his  life  was  cut  short  by  the  anxieties, 
the  responsibilities,  and  the  vexations  attending  a  public  career. 
He  was  so  conscientious  in  the  discharge  of  all  his  duties,  so  labo- 


ADDKKSS  OF  Alii.  HAMPTON,  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA.          51 

riou-5  in  the  performance  of  them,  so  sensitive  in  his  nature,  that  his 
health  gave  way  under  the  severe  strain  to  whioh  it  was  subjected 
by  his  public  duties.  Broken  in  health,  bravely  struggling  to  the 
last  in  the  interest  of  the  people  who  had  honored  him,  he  fell  at 
his  post  of  duty  with  his  harness  on,  and  his  last,  his  dying  efforts 
were  given  to  the  State  he  had  served  well,  and  to  the  people  who 
loved  and  trusted  him.  His  death  was  a  severe  loss  to  that  State, 
an  irreparable  one  to  his  family,  but  a  gain  to  him,  for  he  had  so 
lived  that  he  was  well  prepared  to  give  an  account  of  the  deeds 
done  in  the  flesh.  He  lived  long  enough  to  achieve  an  honorable, 
enviable  reputation,  and  long  enough  to  realize  that — 
The  paths  of  glory  lead  but  to  the  grave. 

When  he  was  laid  at  rest  in  the  bosom  of  his  mother  earth,  under 
the  shadows  of  the  magnolias  of  his  native  land,  a  friend  who  knew 
him  well  wrote  thus  of  him : 

For  him  who  lies  iu  peace,  with  restful  hands,  this  morning,  it  had  heen 
better  perhaps  had  he  uever  known  the  vicissitudes  and  responsibilities  of 
political  life.  It  was  all  loss  to  him.  The  gain  was  to  his  people  and  the 
State.  So  must  it  be  too  often  in  such  times  as  these  with  men  most  worthy 
of  public  trust. 

Doubtless,  Mr.  President,  it  would  have  been  better  for  him  had 
he  held  aloof  from  the  rude  arena  of  political  warfare,  keeping  the 
even  tenor  of  his  way  along  the  quieter  and  happier  paths  of  pri 
vate  life;  but  we  who  are  left  are  better  for  the  example  of  his  life 
and  that  of  his  death.  The  one  shows  us  the  duty  of  the  patriot, 
the  other  teaches  the  sublime  faith  of  the  Christian.  They  both 
should  impress  on  us  the  great  lesson  that — 

'T  is  not  the  whole  of  life  to  live : 
Nor  all  of  death  to  die. 

The  resolutions  were  agreed  to  unanimously ;  and  the  Senate 
adjourned. 


I  U.S.  U?th 
Ccng.jlst   sess 

31-82. 


E66U 


,0  -f  a  5" 


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